Book and Movie Comparison – Five Feet Apart by Rachael Lippincott, Mikki Daughtry, and Tobias Iaconis

Five Feet Apart was a film I watched because I remembered someone once mentioning it was a good film, and it had Cole Sprouce in it (I was in my Riverdale phase... it didn't last too long).

I actually found this book in my brother's room, and stole it because I've wanted to read it since I watched the film, but didn't want to buy yet another book that would sit on my shelf for ages before I finally read it. Unfortunately, after two days of me having it, he asked for it back, so I had to hurry up and read it before he broke into my house and stole it back.

The Movie

Stella Grant (Haley Lu Richardson) is every bit a seventeen-year-old… she’s attached to her laptop and loves her best friends. But unlike most teenagers, she spends much of her time living in a hospital as a cystic fibrosis patient. Her life is full of routines, boundaries and self-control – all of which is put to the test when she meets an impossibly charming fellow patient named Will Newman (Cole Sprouse).

There’s an instant flirtation, though restrictions dictate that they must maintain a safe distance between them. As their connection intensifies, so does the temptation to throw the rules out the window and embrace that attraction. Further complicating matters is Will’s potentially dangerous rebellion against his ongoing medical treatment. Stella gradually inspires Will to live life to the fullest, but can she ultimately save the person she loves when even a single touch is off limits?

There are few movies that I watch, and then subsequently force my whole family to watch. This was one of those. Stella and Will have CF, and are both in the hospital for different treatments. But while Stella is organised, and sticks to a strict regimen with regards to meds and looking after her body, Will has practically given up. He is simply waiting for his 18th birthday, when he will finally have control of his own life, and can walk away from all the hospitals and live the rest of his life seeing the world, and doing what he wants to do. But when he meets Stella, she forces him to start looking after himself, and it seems he has finally found something to stay alive for.

This is a heart wrenching film to watch. A love story, but the protagonists can't get within 6 feet of each other, lest one passes on germs that could kill the other. And yet, they find ways to spend time together, growing closer, while staying far apart.

I don't know how many times I've watched this film to date, but I know I've enjoyed it every single time (even though I'm now very definitely out of my Riverdale phase, and Cole Sprouce is not quite so exciting).

The Book

Can you love someone you can never touch?

Stella Grant likes to be in control - even though her totally out of control lungs have sent her in and out of the hospital most of her life. At this point, what Stella needs to control most is keeping herself away from anyone or anything that might pass along an infection and jeopardize the possibility of a lung transplant. Six feet apart. No exceptions.

The only thing Will Newman wants to be in control of is getting out of this hospital. He couldn’t care less about his treatments, or a fancy new clinical drug trial. Soon, he’ll turn eighteen and then he’ll be able to unplug all these machines and actually go see the world, not just its hospitals.

Will’s exactly what Stella needs to stay away from. If he so much as breathes on Stella she could lose her spot on the transplant list. Either one of them could die. The only way to stay alive is to stay apart. But suddenly six feet doesn’t feel like safety. It feels like punishment.

What if they could steal back just a little bit of the space their broken lungs have stolen from them? Would five feet apart really be so dangerous if it stops their hearts from breaking too?

Amazon UK • Amazon US

As I mentioned, I stole this book from my brother, and when he started asking for it back, I knew I had a limited time in which to read it before I lost my chance and the book was removed from my person. Reading this book quickly was no problem. Once I started reading, I couldn't stop. I read the whole thing in two days, and I did read some of it while at work because I didn't want to put it down.

I loved seeing both Stella's and Will's point of view as the story progressed. Every chapter switches perspective, so you know what they're both thinking, and watch as they both fall in love, and struggle with the distance. They are so close, and yet their disease keeps them painfully far apart from each other. 

Comparison

Honestly, it is quite hard to compare this movie and book. I don't think I have come across a movie that is so similar to the book. If I didn't know that the book came first, I might've said that the book came after the movie, it was so alike. It is almost astounding how similar they are, especially considering how information, scenes, and sometimes entire characters are cut while making the movie, and the dialogue is generally heavily edited.

The book had decidedly more information about CF, as it is told by the people living with it, rather than in the film, where you are just watching the characters. Stella, in particular, describes the ins and outs of it, what it is, how she struggles with it, and what the dangers are. In addition, Will's B Cepacia diagnosis is explored in depth more in the book than in the film – the disease means he is no longer a candidate for a lung transplant, and should he pass it on to Stella, she would also be taken off the list. But other than some more explanation about Stella and Will's physical, and mental, struggles, the book is not that much different from the film.

The actors have done a fabulous job at portraying Stella and Will. Stella's almost obsessive need to do everything right, and as safely as possible, comes across as clearly as Will's nonchalance, even though his general lack of care about his treatments acts as a mask to hide the range of emotions he feels about his CF, and his dwindling life expectancy. 

If you have enjoyed this book, but have been afraid to watch the film in case it doesn't live up to your expectations, I say just watch it. It is incredibly similar to the book – I would struggle to find a scene that greatly differs between the two.

And done!

I did try to get my brother to participate in this post, as he was the one whose book I had stolen, and I know he likes both the book and the film, but he was too busy napping to write a short piece to help me out. Typical teenager.

Anyway, that's all for now...

Bye!

Movie Reviews – Horror Films – Spooky Season Week, Day 4!

I have no internet at the moment, or I have internet in my building, it just doesn't quite reach my bedroom. While this is very useful in making me go to sleep and stop me staying awake and scrolling for hours, it also means I don't have many options when it comes to actually watching anything. So during the day, I've been downloading things, and watching them in the evening/at night. Which probably isn't the best way to consume horror films, really late at night, and with nothing downloaded to watch afterwards, but still.

Anyway, here are the movies I watched, and the reviews!

Bodies are turning up around the city, each having met a uniquely gruesome demise. As the investigation proceeds, evidence points to one suspect: John Kramer, the man known as Jigsaw, who has been dead for over 10 years.

My Review!

I haven’t watched a lot of very popular movies, and some that I have never seen is any movie in the Saw franchise. I have obviously heard about the films, but I had no idea what they were about or anything. To be fair, I didn’t even realise this was a part of that franchise, although I should’ve been able to guess, given the title. I am not sure how this film compares to the original Saw films, but I really enjoyed it. The story itself was simple to follow, although I’m sure knowledge of the previous films would’ve added to the viewing experience. It got a little confusing towards the end, but again, it wasn’t particularly hard to figure out what was happening. There were certainly characters I liked more than others, although this is a film where good guys and bad guys don’t really exist. It is just a case of who was worse, for there weren’t really any people I would class as ‘good’. Everyone had flaws and most had done terrible things. But still, some characters were much more likeable than others. I am not one who finds horror movies particularly scary, to the point where I was so tired I fell asleep watching this and had to rewind a bit to continue watching it the next day. This film didn’t scare me at all. I would almost go as far as to class it as more of a thriller than a horror film. But still, I did enjoy watching it, and would very much like to go back and watch the rest of the movies in the Saw franchise. 

After firing up a lost 1980s survival horror game, a young coder unleashes a hidden curse that tears reality apart, forcing her to make terrifying decisions and face deadly consequences.

My Review!

This film is one that I, once again, knew absolutely nothing about, and just decided to watch on a whim. I am not generally the kind of person to get at all freaked out at horror films, my inability to be fazed by them is actually something I pride myself on, but this movie had me physically gagging at several scenes. It is not for those with a weak stomach. This film is almost a horror version of Jumanji, in a way. A game that affects the real world. The choices are sometimes presented as incredibly clear, or vague, and the things that happen afterwards are more often than not, completely unexpected. Either way, whatever choice is made usually involved horrific deaths. Kayla is a character completely torn apart by things that have happened in her life, but she doesn’t get a chance to break down and mourn. She is forced to keep going, no matter what, and the game Curs>r, the cause of everything that happens in this film, only makes her grief worse. A curse to some may be a blessing to others, but either way, Kayla goes through hell and has to suffer the consequences of loading up the game in the first place. Not for the faint of heart, but this film is wonderful. I did really enjoy it, even though it did make me feel a little sick. 

After being forced to take a room in a boardinghouse, an immigrant in search of the American Dream finds herself in a nightmare she can't escape.

My Review!

This film was very much one of suspense, that emitted the feeling of being trapped, and not being able to do anything about it. Ambar is desperately trying to improve her situation, but is running into dead ends wherever she turns. She doesn’t have the ID she needs, and can’t get any. She can’t improve her job, can’t find anywhere safe to live. The best she can find is a boarding house, but there is something wrong with the place. The more time she spends there, the more desperate she is to leave, but how can she? She needs to spend money she doesn’t have in order to make more money. She is lost, alone, and desperate. The whole horror aspect of this film almost takes a back burner in comparison to Ambar’s struggles, although that in itself was enough to give this film a sense of dread and uncertainty. I really felt for Ambar, she has no one to help her and no way to escape the things she needs to. And the horror aspects of the film, which do only really come into play in the last half hour, certainly add to the overall sense of not knowing whether Ambar was safe or not, or where she would find herself the following day. I can’t say this is one of the best horror films I’ve ever watched, it had it’s moments, but it didn’t keep me gripped throughout it. Mostly, I felt sorry for Ambar, and was just hoping she would find what she needed and would find somewhere safe to properly start her life. 

And done!

This post went up late because it literally wasn't written. I wrote most of it in the last half hour before it went up. I was supposed to include five films, but only ended up actually watching three before this post was meant to go up. Whoops.

This Spooky Season Week is a little unplanned...!

Anyway, that's all for now...

Bye!

Movie Reviews – Netflix's 'teen' genre

There are a lot of 'teen' movies on Netflix. Like, a lot. It's a very specific genre, strangely, and all of the teen movies I've watched all seem to have the same kind of feel to them, like they're books all written by the same author, or by different authors, all copying each other's style.

I'm not saying that all the teen movies are the same, just that they have the same feel to them.

It's difficult to explain. If you understand, then you understand. If not, then just forget I said anything in the first place.

Anyway, I was in the mood for a teen movie, and decided I would watch some of the ones that have been in my Netflix list for ages, and make a post out of it.

So here we are.

I'll stop rambling, and get into it.

When smart but cash-strapped teen Ellie Chu agrees to write a love letter for a jock, she doesn't expect to become his friend - or fall for his crush.

My Review!

Ellie Chu writes other students papers for cash. It’s a simple transaction. But when Paul Munsky corners her, asking for her to help him write, not a school paper, but a love letter? Things start to get a little more complicated. Especially when the girl Paul is trying to woo is Ellie’s crush. Strapped for money, Ellie initially agrees only to ensure the power stays on in her house, but she finds a friend in Paul, and finds herself unable to stop.

This is a story of love, but this isn’t a love story. Every moment of this film is about love, in one way or another, but it is not the story of two people finding love with each other. Love is too messy for it to be that simple. But this is a story about love for others helping people find themselves. After all, how can you love someone so completely when you aren’t even completely sure who you are, and what you want from life?

This film is packed with poetic turns of phrase, I don’t know if you can tell that it’s completely rubbed off on me by the way I’m writing this review! This film is romantic without the romance, but, in a way, that is what makes it such a good film. But I must share the opening lines of this film, because they were what stuck with me the entire way through:

The ancient Greeks believed humans once had four arms, four legs, and a single head made of two faces. We were happy. Complete. So complete that the gods, fearing our wholeness would quell our need for worship, cleaved us in two… leaving our split selves to wander the Earth in misery. Forever longing. Longing. Longing… for the other half of our soul.

Isn’t that completely heartbreaking and beautiful at the same time? I love it. This is a great film, not entirely heavy, although it does have some important themes – in particular, acceptance. Accepting yourself, and others, for who they are, and coming to an understanding that, while you can’t change who you are, once you accept you for yourself, a whole new world of possibilities opens up.

Wholesome college freshman Tessa Young thinks she knows what she wants out of life, until she crossed paths with complicated bad boy Hardin Scott.

My Review!

Tessa Young has her whole life planned out. She has grown up spending time with her mother, and her best friend turned boyfriend, Noah. But, when she heads off to college, and the people she knows most in the world are no longer there with her, she has to make her way alone. And that includes figuring out who she really wants to be. When she meets Hardin Scott, a certified bad boy, she is torn between continuing to be the good girl she’s always been, and getting to know him.

This film is, unfortunately, not one I enjoyed. For the most part, I absolutely could not stand Hardin. He is arrogant, rude, condescending… in fact, Tessa says that she will not allow him to get a reaction out of her. And suddenly she’s infatuated with him? I can find no redeeming qualities for him in this film. Apparently this film is based on a book series – I don’t know if the book is better, and the film cut out things, but there is absolutely no build up at all. Tessa practically hates Hardin, then she loves him. And that switch happens in about ten minutes. I don’t mean to go on and on about it, but this film is about their relationship, and I just didn’t feel that their relationship worked at all. And I didn’t like Hardin… did I mention that already?

It wasn’t just my hatred for Hardin that made me not like this film. Important scenes were rushed over, without a clear conclusion. It almost had the feel of flicking through a book, reading a paragraph, and then moving on, without reading the full story. The film flowed, it wasn’t overly disjointed, but the story was. After reading some of the reviews for the book this film is based on, there is clearly a lot of extra information about important scenes that was not put into the movie. I do get that it’s a very long book (nearly 600 pages) and not everything can go into the film, but still.

I don’t often write bad reviews, and I know a lot of people really liked this film, but it absolutely was not for me. Well, we can’t all like everything!

The summer before college Auden meets the mysterious Eli, a fellow insomniac. While the seaside town of Colby sleeps, the two embark on a nightly quest to help Auden experience the fun, carefree teen life she never knew she wanted.

My Review!

Auden wants to do something different the summer before college. She has spent her entire life being a person she is not sure she wants to be, and she knows she can’t become someone else in her hometown. So she travels to visit her father, hoping that a change of scenery and new faces will help her figure out who she wants to be. And then, she meets Eli, a mysterious guy who helps her have fun on night time quests – quests to allow Auden to experience what being a teenager, and having fun, really is.

This film is laid out like your typical teen movie – the quiet girl who spends her time studying and reading goes away for the summer, and suddenly makes friends, after a life of not having any. But, there is so much more to this film. I did really enjoy watching this one. While Auden is unsure about Eli’s ‘quests’, she goes along with it, growing closer to her midnight companion, but at the same time, Auden is helping Eli, without even really knowing it. Eli has his secrets from the past, reasons for why he is only around in the middle of the night, when no one else is around, and as Eli helps Auden to live her life, Auden helps Eli to heal, and move on with his.

There is not a lot of romance in this film, but a lot of great friendships – I’m not going to lie, I’m jealous of Auden. What I would give for an Eli of my own, to do quests with in the middle of the night! Also, I haven’t ridden a bike in ages, and haven’t owned one in longer, but Eli rides a bike, and bikes are a big thing in this film, and now I really want to get a bike to ride it around where I live. I might have to try and find one for sale!

Anyway, I went off topic a little. Amazing film, great friends, good feels. All of it. Love it. Highly recommend!

A clean-cut high school student relies on the school's rumor mill to advance her social and financial standing.

My Review!

Olive did not expect a little lie she told her friend to get out of going camping to escalate quite as much as it did. One minute, she had a date with an imaginary guy, the next minute, she had spent the weekend with him, and lost her v-card. And suddenly, the whole school knew. But it wasn’t the fact that everyone believed Olive had sex that really caused the problem – it was Olive’s inability to not help people out. So, she also fake slept with someone because they were bullied for being gay. And then someone else. And so on, and so forth.

To be fair to Olive, it was a very good business that she had going on. People could say that they had made out with her, slept with her, ect. In exchange for gift cards. The only problem was that Olive’s reputation went rapidly downhill with so many people believing that she actually had done so, and her life got very difficult, very quickly.

This is a very comedic film, although a serious one at the same time. There are jokes, sure, and Olive’s parents are the most chill, sarcastic, carefree parents any film has ever created, but Olive doesn’t exactly have an easy time of it. She loses friends, people refuse to talk to her, or those that do talk to her only want to spend time with her for her reputation. She is incredibly lonely, even though all the attention is always on her. She is completely ostracized, and can’t figure out how to free herself.

This is a great film. I’ve seen it many times before, but I wanted to watch it again, and it seemed a great addition to this post. I’ve done poetic, terrible, romantic… time for comedy! Also, Emma Stone is amazing by herself. Perfect for the role of Olive. Anyway, love this film, I’ve watched it at least five times, will watch again!

And done!

I wasn't entirely sure how many movies to include in this post. There's something that demands I stick to odd numbers – a review of one film, or three, or five... but I said screw it, I didn't want to have to find another film, so I did four instead.

Anyway, that's all for now...

Bye!

Rewatching my favourite films from when I was younger

Sometimes, you just want to sit back and watch a Universal or PG rated film, because you don't really have to pay attention to them for them to make sense.

There are several DVDs on my shelf that I was absolutely obsessed with when I was younger, when I was maybe 12 ish, that I haven't watched for years. So I decided to rewatch them, to see if I still love them as much, and to see if they bring back the obsessions I once had.

Let's get watching!

Morgan Freeman, Harry Connick Jr and Ashley Judd star in this family drama based on the true story of a dolphin who is given a new lease of life after being badly injured in a trap off the Florida coast. When a young dolphin loses her tail after becoming caught in a crab trap, she is rescued and taken to the Clearwater Marine Hospital, where she is given the name of Winter. There a marine biologist joins forces with a brilliant prosthetics doctor to create a new tail for Winter, who is also befriended by a young boy, Sawyer (Nathan Gamble).

Dolphin Tale 2 continues the story of the brave dolphin Winter, who faces an uncertain future when her surrogate mother, the very elderly dolphin Panama, passes away.

I grouped these two movies together, because if I talk about one, I will also be talking about the other, so I might as well just do it all at once.

Let us first recap the premises, because I couldn't find descriptions that actually explain what the films are about!

Dolphin Tale:

Sawyer is supposed to be participating in summer school, due to failing grades, but when he finds a dolphin, tangled up with ropes, on the beach, he can't just leave her there. Clearwater Marine Hospital are called, and arrive to save her, but Sawyer cannot just let her go, without knowing if she's okay. So, he goes to visit.

The dolphin, named Winter, is in a bad way. Her tail was badly damaged, to the point of needing to be removed, and she seems to be giving up. That is, until she realises Sawyer has snuck in to see her. Even as ill as she is, Winter recognises Sawyer, and, for him, she starts to try. But with the hospital low on funds, and rapidly losing more money, it isn't just Winter's life at stake, but the future of the entire hospital.

Dolphin Tale 2:

When Winter's companion, Panama, passes away, she is left alone in her pool, grieving. Nothing anyone can do will get her to engage, and her spine is starting to get worse without consistent use of her prosthetic tail. With it being law to not keep dolphins alone, due to their need for socialisation, Winter not having a companion is causing more problems than just her own loneliness.

Sawyer has been invited to go on a marine course, with a fully funded scholarship, but he can't possibly agree to leave when he doesn't know if Winter will be okay, or if she will even be staying at Clearwater Marine Aquarium. With the deadline for getting Winter paired with another dolphin, and the deadline for Sawyer to accept the scholarship, looming, it seems that sometimes all you need is a little hope...

These movies were an absolute favourite of mine, especially since they're based on a true story. I actually watched the second movie (and knew it inside out) before I watched the first, but it doesn't really matter which order you watch them in. These are movies I used to watch on repeat, as soon as one ended, I would restart it, or put the other one on, and I became a little dolphin obsessed. It was always a dream of mine to go and visit Winter. Unfortunately, she passed away last year, but her whole story is still incredibly inspirational, and, even though I never got to meet her, she helped to give me a much deeper understanding of the importance of looking after marine life. After watching this the first few times, I tried to find a marine biology course to do online that would end in me having a marine biology qualification – keep in mind I was maybe 11 or 12 at this point!

Even now, I still love dolphins, and after rewatching these films, it has rekindled my desire to learn more about marine life. Maybe I will go searching again for a marine biology course! As with many films I haven't watched for ages, I was a little concerned I might find it slightly boring, since I already knew the whole movie inside and out, but I was pleasantly surprised, and found myself loving it just as much now as I used to. I think these films will forever hold a place in my heart.

Matt Damon stars in this feelgood family feature based on the memoir by Benjamin Mee. Newly widowed Benjamin (Damon) is finding life difficult trying to raise his two young children. Urged on by his father, Duncan (Thomas Haden Church), to start over, Benjamin decides to purchase a rundown zoo in the countryside in the hope that it will bring his family together again. Having to care for 47 species, and with his friends thinking he's mad, Benjamin sets out to restore the zoo to its former glory with the help of a small but loyal staff led by Kelly Foster (Scarlett Johansson).

Again, a film about animals, based on a true story. I think it must've been a phase I went through. But again, this film was one I used to absolutely love. Unlike some of the others on this post, which I think are very much catered towards a younger audience, this is a film that all ages can watch and equally enjoy. 

I will point out something about this description I found. This bit: 'Urged on by his father, Duncan (Thomas Haden Church)'. This blurb was on Amazon, where this DVD is being sold... Duncan is not Benjamin's father, Duncan is his older brother. I can't help but think Duncan would take offence to people thinking he is old enough to be his brother's father!

Watching this film brings up more emotion now than it did whenever I last watched it. Knowing what's going to happen almost makes it worse. This film does cover topics of loss, and grieving, and watching Benjamin try to make difficult decisions, with the pain of losing his wife still fresh, is heartbreaking. He tries to hold onto everything, because he is scared to lose something else he loves. It might be because I now understand this that this film is more emotional for me to watch now. Either way, this is a wonderful family film, and it is one that I continue to love.

Comedy superstar Steve Martin (Bringing Down The House) and film favourite Bonnie Hunt (Jerry Maguire) team up in this hilarious tale of two hard-working parents trying to manage careers and a household – amid the chaos of raising twelve rambunctious kids. With a crowd-pleasing supporting cast, including rising young stars Hilary Duff (Lizzie McGuire) and Piper Perabo (Coyote Ugly), this heart-warming hit comedy delivers super-sized fun and laughs by the dozen!

The way I view this film has definitely changed since I last watched it. I remember watching it, and feeling sorry for the kids, wanting the parents to pay more attention to them, to organise themselves a bit better, so they would have the time they needed. Now, though, I see eleven children living at home, and plenty of hands who are very capable of helping out, but who do not want to do so.

I have siblings, although nowhere near as many as there are in this film, and I think the best line that sums up the relationship of siblings is in this film. It goes something along the lines of "sometimes I want to kill you, but I would always kill for you". That isn't the exact quote, but I can't be bothered to find the word for word correct quote right now!

Of all the Baker children, the one I remember most is Charlie. As a thirteen-year-old, I most certainly had a crush on Charlie. Looking things up now, I find out the actor actually older than my parents, but still. In the film, he's playing a 17 year old. I mean, sure, the actor was 25 at the time, but he was cute! My opinion on that still hasn't really changed...!

Mega-budget, special-effects packed action adventure sci-fi epic directed by Roland Emmerich (Independence Day, Stargate), in which global warming and the greenhouse effect have given rise to abrupt climate change - with cataclysmic consequences for the entire planet. Dennis Quaid stars as Professor Adrian Hall, a paleoclimatologist who is fighting to save the world from a second ice age and all the natural disasters that herald it: floods, hurricanes, earthquakes and tornadoes to name but a few. But first, Hall must complete a more personal mission: his son Sam (Jake Gyllenhaal) is stranded in New York City where he was taking part in a school competition when the catastrophe began. As well as facing a perpetual onslaught of natural catastrophes, Hall must fight his way through the mass of humanity fleeing south into warmer climes... but can he reach his son in time to save him?

This film is definitely the first disaster movie I ever watched, and it sparked a love for this genre. I haven't watched this film in years, and maybe it's because I have more of an understanding of it now, but I couldn't help but pick this movie apart as I watched it. I mean, there's obviously tons of scientific inaccuracies, but also tons of simple things that I just couldn't quite understand. Maybe it's just me, but if I were stuck in a library, trying to keep a fire going to stay warm and alive, I would burn the wooden chairs, not just the books? Maybe my logic isn't correct, I don't know, but still.

One definite memory about this film is that I had my first nosebleed while watching it. I have never got nosebleeds, so you can imagine my surprise when I get a bad one when just sitting down, watching a disaster film where everything's going wrong, and everyone's dying. I am not sure why I got a nosebleed then, and I haven't had one since. Weird.

Unfortunately, this film doesn't quite hold up now that I'm older, and can spot the inaccuracies. Now that I've seen it again, I think I'll put the film away, and keep my memories of it sparking a love for disaster films, rather than re-rewatch it, and cement the problems in my mind.

Yo-Ho-Ho! join the Muppets on the high seas in their follow up to the successful adaptation of 'A Christmas Carol' in this version of the famous pirate adventure 'Treasure Island'. Tim Curry stars as Long John Silver alongside Gonzo, Rizzo, Kermit as Captain Smollet and Miss Piggy as Benjamina Gunn.

I wasn't going to include this one, because all of the other films so far have been kind of serious films, and this post was starting to feel quite long, but this film was definitely a comfort film growing up, and it still is. Who can resist The Muppets?!

I remember something in particular about The Muppets, although I can't remember if it was this film, or Muppets From Space. When I was 13 or 14, I had an absolutely horrible ear infection, to the point where I physically could not hear anything. Of course, feeling ill, being in pain, and deaf, I put on The Muppets to make me feel better. I also proceeded to drop my DVD remote off my bed, and right into a glass of water that I had on my floor, breaking the remote. Before I had the chance to turn the subtitles on. So I spent several hours watching Muppet films in silence, with no subtitles. Strangely, they're still comforting, even if you can't hear what's going on.

The best thing about this film, though, which sets it above the rest (except maybe The Muppets Christmas Carol, which is still my favourite Christmas film) is the song Cabin Fever. Honestly, go and listen to it. Here's a LINK. This song was my anthem during the COVID lockdowns.

So yeah, The Muppets rule.

And done!

This is probably the longest post I've ever written for this blog, so I'm not going to ramble down here. I'm just going to shut up and say...

Anyway, that's all for now...

Bye!

Movie Review – The Open House – how can you be completely sure you don't have an unexpected guest in your home?

Something I have started to realise – I only ever review thrillers and horror films. I review every kind of book, but the kind of movies I find myself watching are very limited.

It might be because I spend ages scrolling though lists of movies, trying to find something I actually want to watch, and I know for a fact that I enjoy movies that fall into those two genres, so I try to restrict the amount of time I spend searching by choosing a film from those genres.

Who knows.

Anyway, let me introduce you to this film, and then I can share my review!

Following a tragedy, a mother and her teen son move to a relative's vacant vacation home, where eerie and unexplained forces conspire against them.

My Review!

After the death of his father, Logan and his mother, Naomi, find themselves traveling to Naomi’s sister’s house in the mountains. They don’t have the money to stay living where they were, and going to the mountain house is a break, not only from everything going on, but also from the worry of having to find the money to keep a roof above their heads.

The house is massive, the kind of place you don’t live in, but vacation in. It is for sale, but Logan and Naomi are free to live there, to look after the place, as long as they make themselves scarce during open house events. But, strange things start to happen. Logan starts to hear strange banging sounds, and things go missing from one room, only to turn up in another. The water heater turns itself off, and Naomi repeatedly has to go down to the basement to relight the pilot light.

I was not entirely sure what I was getting myself in to when I clicked on this movie to watch. I honestly thought I was clicking on a thriller, not a horror, so you can imagine my surprise when there were creepy camera perspectives, and I started to wonder if I had perhaps clicked on something I didn’t realise. I must say, though, the camera shots are great. There are plenty of angles that have a little room for something creepy to just be in shot in the background, and it’s almost scarier when there’s nothing there.

It’s not really a spoiler, but if I don’t mention it, I can’t talk about the film at all. This film is about a home invasion, of someone hiding within the house while Logan and Naomi are there. The person is practically living there alongside them, but they don’t know. I think the reason I found this film as creepy as I did was because home invasion is a massive fear of mine. I am constantly afraid of getting up in the night to go to the bathroom, as both Logan and Naomi do in this film, and realising I am not alone. The camera shots really bring all of that together, into a film that actually creeped me out, and not many horror films have ever done that.

Something I liked about this film was that Logan and Naomi are not a strong team, fighting together against the grief of losing Logan’s father. They are divided. Logan never wanted to move anyway, and was not given much of a choice on the matter. Not only did he lose his father, his life was turned upside-down. Meanwhile, Naomi is just trying to get by on what little money they have. They fight, accuse each other of doing things. The house they are in is much too big for just two people to be living in it, so in a way, they are more than just alone, they are isolated from each other and the outside world. 

I have never really come across open houses as a method of selling a house. It might just be not done in the area where I live, I am not sure. To me, the idea of people just wandering around your house, and you not having any idea where they are in the house, or what they are doing as they walk around, is ridiculous. There is a perfect quote from the film, that entirely sums up what my thoughts are on the matter:

I mean, you give your keys to someone you hardly know, they stand in one room and welcome in a bunch of complete strangers, and those people just roam around the house. And the realtor doesn't check the house when it's done, right? They just... turn the lights off and go?

Doesn’t it just seem like the perfect opportunity for people to walk in and steal stuff, or plant things… or stay... the list of bad things I can think of happening is endless, and yet, this isn’t just something that happened in the movie, people actually do open houses? Maybe it’s less creepy if the house isn’t quite as big as the one in this film. I just know if strangers were walking around my house, I would want to know where they were at all times. I am getting off topic!

It seems to be becoming a thing, where I watch a film, and when I look the film up afterwards, so I can get all the necessary information about it to write a review, I find it has countless bad reviews. At least this time, there are some good reviews to counter the bad. Yes, there isn’t much of a conclusion at the end, and yes, there isn’t much plot. But, the entire movie builds suspense, and the ending was creepier without a conclusion. There was no answer to the why, and it’s the not knowing that makes this scary. Logan and Naomi don’t know there’s someone in their house. The viewer doesn’t know who is in the house, or why. I knew this was a good film while I was watching it, for the simple reason that I realised I was scared. I don’t get scared at horror films, this is not me bragging, I just don’t. I see the camera shots, predict the jump scares depending what is in the scene. I try to guess the ending before the film has even started. But I went into this film thinking it was a thriller, so I wasn’t trying to guess a horror film ending. Yes, I appreciated the camera shots, but there weren’t many jump scares, if any, really. This was a film built on tension, about something that scares me in real life, and I was sucked into the film so much that I actually felt scared. I do think this is a film that you will either love or hate, but for me, I definitely love it.

And done!

This is actually the longest review I have ever written for a movie. It might be the longest review on this blog. It does include a quote from the film, and a rant about why I think open houses are a bad idea, but still.

Also, that tagline on the cover? You can't lock out what's already inside. It makes me shudder just thinking about it.

Anyway, that's all for now...

Bye!

Movie Review – Countdown – what would you do if you knew exactly when you were going to die?

I've been watching a lot of movies about clocks counting down to death recently. First In Time, and now this one.

This film came up on Netflix, and I added it to my list. I can't remember exactly when that was, but I've now watched it!

I will introduce the film, and then we can get into my review!

When a nurse downloads an app that claims to predict exactly when a person is going to die, it tells her she only has three days to live. With time ticking away and a figure haunting her, she must find a way to save her life before time runs out.

My Review!

An app that tells you when you are going to die. It sounds like fun and games, download it and it gives you a random amount of time on a clock. And it is fun, for those who get thirty years, sixty years… but for those that have a matter of days, a matter of hours? Things seem a little more real.

Quinn Harris is a nurse, at a hospital where a patient is certain he is going to die in surgery. When he shows Quinn the Countdown app, she believes it’s just a silly app, and that he’s got himself worked up over nothing. But his girlfriend also downloaded the app, and she died when her clock reached zero. When Quinn tells her co-workers about the app they all download it, to see how long they so-called have left to live. Quinn has two days.

Disturbed, Quinn tries to continue life as usual, until she comes in the next day to learn that the patient has died. And his phone shows that his clock has no more time left. She tries everything to escape the ticking clock that is hanging over her head, but nothing seems to work. Even buying a new phone does nothing, as the app simply downloads itself onto that one as well. After all, you can’t escape your fate.

This was a fabulous film. I don’t think there’s a single moment when you’re not ever so slightly on edge about what is going to happen next, and completely aware that the clock isn’t stopping, but steadily ticking down as everything happens. Quinn comes across as a very real character. She doesn’t simply disregard the app, or completely obsess over it, but it nags at her, the thought of her impending death scares her and there is seemingly nothing she can do about it. She is not sure whether to truly believe it or not, but she has enough information to put her on edge, and she can’t be at ease until she knows the truth – and she can’t know the truth until her clock runs out.

As Quinn starts to learn more about the app, things start to click into place with how it works. It is clear from the first few minutes that there is some sort of supernatural nature to the app, so it is not a spoiler to talk about that, but I won’t go too much into what it really is, and the ins and outs of it. The whole idea (that I’m not going to talk about!) is one I don’t think I’ve come across before, and the way it was carried out was wonderful. It is not just a scary movie, with some scary situation, jump scares, and a couple of deaths, it has depth to it, and while there are some jump scares, I think they worked with the film. It is not the kind of supernatural entity that you can figure out the rules to within minutes, there are layers upon layers of different rules for the supernatural aspect of this film, that will keep you thinking even after you’ve finished watching.

Quinn was a character I really liked. She is not perfect in any way, but she tries her hardest at the things she feels are important. Quinn is the character that spends the most time on-screen, and while there are two other characters who I would consider ‘main’ characters, she is definitely the centre role of the film, so I’m glad I liked her! The other two characters, Quinn’s younger sister, Jordan, and Matt, who Quinn meets at an electronic store, when trying to get the app off her phone, are also very likeable characters. I liked Matt, in particular. He is troubled by his past, and scared of what his future holds with the clock on his phone ticking down. Meeting Quinn seems to be what saves him from completely losing himself in what seems to be his last few hours. Jordan and Quinn’s relationship is strained, Quinn is never around, and they don’t spend time together anymore. And, like Matt, both Quinn and Jordan have an event of the past that troubles them, and as a result of that, a morbid curiosity to know how long they have left.

This is a wonderful thriller, and I can see how this could really freak some people out. The idea of finding out when you are going to die is not an original one, but this way of telling the story is almost fascinating, because it almost seems plausible. A silly free app, that all your friends are downloading for a game, or that you hear about and curiously download. And after that, all you know is the tick, tick, tick of each second of your life slipping away. If you like thrillers, horror, and the supernatural, this is a must-watch!

And done!

This really was a great movie. There are some films that I watch and can just forget about afterwards, but there are some that I have to talk about afterwards because I loved them so much. This was the latter.

Anyway, that's all for now...

Bye!

Movie Review – In Time – a film where you pay for things with your lifespan

I actually watched this film a while ago. By that, I mean at least two weeks. Actually, I wrote this review in my notes app, and it's dated. I watched this film, and wrote this review, fifteen days ago.

And now I'm finally making the post!

Let me introduce the film, and then I can (finally) share my review!

Welcome to a world where time has become the ultimate currency. You stop aging at 25, but there's a catch: you're genetically-engineered to live only one more year, unless you can buy your way out of it. The rich "earn" decades at a time (remaining at age 25), becoming essentially immortal, while the rest beg, borrow or steal enough hours to make it through the day. When a man from the wrong side of the tracks is falsely accused of murder, he is forced to go on the run with a beautiful hostage. Living minute to minute, the duo's love becomes a powerful tool in their war against the system.

My Review!

A society that deals in time. Lives in time. Time is the very essence and structure of everyone’s lives. And while some people have all the time in the world, others are running out of time. Time is both a currency, and a life force. If you run out of time, you die. But with the cost of living rising, and wages decreasing, more people are running out of time and dying. 

Will Salas grew up in Dayton, a poor time zone. Ever since his clock started, on his 25th birthday, he has been living day to day, barely keeping up with time. It is all he knows. So, when he runs into a stranger at a bar, the century on his clock clear for all to see, Will knows the man is in danger. Where he lives, that kind of time doesn’t stay with the owner for long. 

When Will wakes up after saving the man with over a century on his clock, he doesn’t know what to do. For the first time in his life, Will has time to spend, can sit around without worrying. But, there are still people on the cusp of running out. So why should he get to keep it? The class system is corrupt, with some people living forever, and giving no thought to the countless dying each day. Justice is one word for what Will wants. And justice he strives for. 

Will finds himself hunted by the Timekeepers, enforcers of the system who accuse him of stealing the century he was given. He goes on the run, taking the overprotected daughter of one of the richest men in the world with him. Together, as they evade the timekeepers, they work to bring down the elite while raising up the poor. 

There is obviously a very clear social class injustice portrayed in this film. The rich live forever, and the poor can barely make it a day. Will becomes a Robin Hood of sorts, taking from the rich to give to the poor. No matter how high the reward for turning Will in may raise, why bother if he will give them more than the reward? 

I loved the concept of this film. There is the class system, and everything must be paid in time. Something may cost four minutes, something else an hour. There are some wonderful lines, such as a young girl approaching Will and asking ‘have you got a minute?’ Except, she is literally after a minute, rather than a moment of his time. On top of the Timekeepers, enforcing the law, there are Minutemen, thugs who are more than happy to steal whatever’s on your clock and time you out. Time is everywhere and everything. It creates a very interesting dystopian fantasy world. 

While obviously the Timekeepers are the bad guys, I couldn’t truly hate them. The leader, Raymond Leon, is determined to catch Will, but he is not simply driven without any other reason. Leon has his reasons for everything he does, and while Will’s view on things is the one I most sympathise with, I could understand Leon’s. He’s worked for fifty years maintaining the time. Will could cause all that work to crumble, could destroy the system. 

While the concept is incredibly interesting, there were scenes that I thought fell completely flat. Some of the dialogue and events seemed rushed and unfinished, like (ironically) there wasn’t enough time to make them as perfect as they could be. The ending in particular is not one that will stay with you for a long time, it was, unfortunately, rather disappointing. I think this may have been what caused me not to completely hate the Timekeepers. Well, that and Leon is played by Cillian Murphy.

All in all, this is an enjoyable movie, but not the kind of film I would call spectacular, which is a shame, because the idea is so good. This is, though, a great film to watch casually if you are after some action, drama, and an interesting dystopian future. Like I said, the concept is fascinating, and it’s a great new spin on the story of Robin Hood that we all know. 

And done!

I don't really remember if I had any plan of things to talk about down here, since it's been so long since I actually watched the film. Just pretend I said something really witty.

That's all for now...

Bye!

Movie Review – Polaroid – when a camera 'shoot' may actually be lethal

I have way too many films on my to-watch list.

I've also managed to get really behind on my blog posts, I missed several in the last few weeks, and I want to get more organised with them. I wrote a list of posts I want to make, so I can actually get some finished, and making that list involved scrolling through my Netflix list to see what movies I could review. This was one I couldn't remember adding to my list, so I was obviously intrigued and clicked it.

I watched it instead of finishing my list.

Let me introduce it, and then we will get into my review.

High school loner Bird Fitcher finds a vintage Polaroid camera that holds dark and mysterious secrets. She soon realizes that those who get their picture taken by it meet a tragic and untimely death.

My Review!

Bird Fitcher is the person in high school with a nickname, the kind people say loudly, so that you’ll definitely hear it. ‘Scarf Girl’, who always has a scarf around her neck to hide an old scar. Bird loves photography and antiques, so when her friend, Tyler, gives her an old polaroid camera that he found in a yard sale, she is overjoyed. She snaps a photo of him to commemorate the moment.

A few hours later, Tyler is dead. A shadow on the photo Bird took disappears, and moves to a newer photo, one of another friend. Hours later, and she is also dead.

Bird has a single picture, with all her friends in it, taken with the camera. With two people dead, and the shadow mysteriously having moved onto the picture with all her friends, Bird starts to grow worried. There is something about the camera, something about the deaths of her friends and the photos taken. The shadow looms over the group photo, as she realises that someone in the photo is next.

The two characters we see the most in this film are Bird and Connor. Connor is a guy Bird has a crush on, and they meet at a party, where Connor goes on to be featured in the group photo. After talking to Bird for a brief time, Connor starts to spend more time around her, teaming up with Bird to try and solve the mystery, and escape the danger, of being in the polaroid. Connor seems to be the one who believes Bird the most when she tries to tell her friends she is worried for them, and the photo, and together they work to try and figure out what is happening, why, and how to stop it.

I really liked Bird’s character. She is a very fleshed out main character, she has all the attributes of a real person – she is not just a backstory and the events of the film. Unfortunately, some of the other characters felt a little flat. Like they were just there for the sake of another character, rather than being real people in the situation. There was one character, I won’t name which, who I was certain from the start was going to die. They just seemed like the kind of person added into the film to be a friend who died. What do you know, they did! There was another character, though, Devin, who I thought was the next most real character after Bird. Unlike some of the others, he had very strong emotions that changed with what was happening, and he reacted to them physically. He might’ve been my favourite character, just for how real he came across. 

Those in the pictures are linked to them, and that, in turn, links the shadow to them. I watch films with subtitles on, and the subtitles referred to the shadow as an ‘entity’. The entity shows up within the first few minutes of the film, so it is not a spoiler to talk about it. It makes an utterly terribly noise, a ragged wheezing, screeching scream. It is the kind of sound that is the last thing you ever hear. I won’t go into detail, but I quite liked the ‘rules’ of the entity. There are always rules for supernatural beings, like how werewolves can be killed with silver, or vampires with a wooden stake. The entity has rules I’ve never come across before, and I thought they fit the film perfectly.

When looking up this film, after watching it, I found a lot of negativity about it. Apparently, not many people liked it. While I can understand that it’s not an engrossing horror film, that makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up, it is not without tension. Sure, there are predictable moments, and it uses jump scares to add to the horror aspect, but it was still enjoyable. Some people have called it unoriginal, saying that the story has been done before. I can’t really add my own opinion to this, because I’ve never seen this kind of story anywhere else. This might be why I enjoyed it more than others, who have.

Yes, this film may not be what some people would class as a horror film, I would personally say it’s not that scary, but I don’t get scared watching horror films as it is. I would consider it more of a tense supernatural thriller. There is a lot of darkness, as with most horror films, and I am once again made to question – do lots of people use weak lamps as lighting in their homes, rather than lights that actually light up the room, or is that just a thing in horror films so there are shadows and dark corners? 

Overall, I enjoyed this film. It is a quick film, just under an hour and a half, and while I found it more interesting than scary, it was entertaining. I think it might’ve been better with less jump scares and more gore, but it was still a good film. It certainly was not one I regret watching, it wasn’t a waste of my time (and believe me, I’ve watched several films before that were!) I would quite happily watch this again, perhaps with a friend, to introduce them to it. 

And done!

I honestly don't know why I can't find any positive reviews for this film. There's not actually that many reviews of it, and they're all terrible. It wasn't that bad! I liked it!

That's all for now...

Bye!