Waiting in the wings....

I'm finishing off writing up some more reviews to publish which I will hopefully have done within the next couple of days. 

These include:

*Book Vs Movie - Let The Right One In (Swedish and US versions)

*Film review - The Great Gatsby

*Author Review - John Ajvide Lindqvist (a new section where I'll be looking into some of my favourite writer's work) 

I am also going to publish some of the photos from the World War Z set, to mark the films release in a few weeks time. 

Drop me a comment below if you have a review request or would like to see a certain type of post more often :) 

Film Review - The Hangover Part 3 (2013)

The time has come. The time has come to say goodbye to the wolfpack. When the first Hangover film was released back in 2009, it was brilliant. One of the best comedy movies in a long time and set the bar for future movies. So when the second movie came out 2 years later, we expected the same standard. And, honestly, it was a little disappointing. It was a good movie. It was still funny. But it followed pretty much the same structure as the first movie, so it was a little repetitive. But it was still a good movie and we still enjoyed it, despite its flaws. 
What were we to think about a third movie? What could they do differently? Well, no stag do, no wedding, so whats the plot? A criminal war between a Vegas mobster and Chow which the wolfpack is dragged into. 

Did it hold up well against the other two movies? Yes and No. It's a decent watch and a nice ending to the series but it's not as funny as the first two. It's more feel good than funny. But i'm not saying it's not funny, it is, just not as much as the other two. What i loved about this movie though, was that it went full circle. We go back to Vegas, we revisit characters from the first movie including Jade and Carlos. There are a load of in jokes that you won't get unless you have seen the other movies. Strangely though, this is the only movie in the series not to feature Mike Tyson. 

If you want a movie to cheer you up and brighten your day, go see this. If you're a fan of the trilogy, go see it. If you didn't like the other movies, i'd give it a miss. 

One little thing that i'll end with though. A little tip. Don't leave when the credits start to roll. There is a scene in the middle of the credits and its totally worth waiting for. That one scene made me want to see another Hangover movie, and it's the perfect end scene for the trilogy. 

Film Review - Star Trek Into Darkness (2013)

Firstly, I want to start by saying I'm not a huge Star Trek fan (I'm sorry I'm sorry!!).

My dad is a fan of the original show so I have watched it somewhat. But space stuff normally doesn't interest me. Far away galaxies and aliens aren't really my thing. But this did look quite good.

I can't compare it to the last movie since I never watched it. At the time, I was a huge Heroes fan and couldn't see Zachary Quinto in any other role apart from Sylar, so it was difficult for me to take the trailers seriously. Heroes has been off the air for years now so it isn't too bad. Shame to say, I'm also a BBC Sherlock fan, and if I didn't have a thing for Benedict Cumberbatch, I would have had the same problem this time around. (Though there was one scene in the movie I did take a step back and think "You know, this is Sylar chasing after Sherlock Holmes")

But enough of me and my typecasting, how was the movie? It was surprisingly really good. Not too hard to follow, even for new viewers such as myself. It had its funny moments, its dramatic moments, its silly moments and its action packed moments. The acting is pretty decent. Plot is a bit iffy but i don't know if that is just this plot or if its a genre thing, i'm not sure. As i've mentioned, it's not my normal territory.

Is it worth a watch? Yeah. It was on my list of summer blockbusters and though it's not the best movie so far this summer, its good. It's not for everyone but if you like sci-fi/star trek, go see it. And if not, if you think the trailer is good, then go see it too, it do live up to the advertisements

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Book Review: "Dead Ever After"

Book Review

"Dead Ever After" - Charlaine Harris

Sookie Stackhouse/The Southern Vampire Mysteries/ True Blood #13 (Final book)

Though I've never really bothered with the tv version, I loved the books for years. Despite the decline in quality the past couple of books, I still get excited every year for another visit to Bon Temps. Nothing beats the blues than snuggling up in bed with a cup of tea and some Sookie Stackhouse :) I would say it was a guilty pleasure except I don't feel guilty about it lol. And like many fans, I had my own ideas and hopes for the ending. Strangely, everything I wanted to happen actually happened! Which resulted in me yelling "Yasss!!! I knew it!" at random moments. 

So what did I think? Well, being as spoiler free as I can, there are no new major character brought in, which I liked. However, I felt that Harris had just wrote a list of past character who could be bad guys and just picked at random. Which did result in me thinking "wait! What? He's after Sookie? Why? He was in like one scene, 5 books ago! Why have you brought him back?" They weren't all like that though. One of the villains was actually a bad guy and we knew that and I had marked him down as a character I wanted to make a reappearance before the series ended anyway. So that made sense. The others, not so much. 

The other thing I didn't like was the ending. Not the conclusion, I liked that, but the final face off with the bad guys. It felt rushed, without sense of threat. Now, mmmm, book 9! Now THAT had threat. This one didn't. The scene was resolved within a couple of pages, without much happening. So that was a disappointment. 

All in all, the book did feel rushed towards to end and yes it did had plot holes and we were left with quite a few questions left to ask. But we live, make do and enjoy the ride anyway. Old faces popped up for a final time to help Sookie. The story moved into third person as well as first which was fun - nice to see what else goes on when Sookie's not around - and it did tie up a load of loose ends. 

So in conclusion, did i like it? Silly question. Course i did. It wasn't the best book, but was a little better than the last couple. It was another wee fun adventure in Bon Temps. I still can't get over the fact that this is the final book. Next summer won't be the same without it. But i'm glad Sookie got her happily ever after, and that was the whole point. I'm sad to see her go. 

On a side note - as for the unanswered questions, at the end of the year Harris is due to release the final final Sookie book called "After Dead" which is what happened next - an A-Z of characters and their final fates. So I'm looking forward to reading that out of curiosity. 

Film Review - Iron Man 3 (2013)

"I just stole a poncho from a wooden Indian"

So Marvel's Phase Two is officially under way. It's the moment we've been waiting for since the end of last summer. Will it be as good as Phase One? No one was really sure. The Avengers was such a good movie that Phase Two had to step it up. 

Phase Two (as far as i'm aware) will feature the following:

• Iron Man 3
• Thor: The Dark World
• Captian America: The Winter Soldier 
• Guardians Of The Galaxy 
• Ant Man (?)
• The Avengers 2

I'm not too sure about Ant Man since some sources say Phase Two, others say Phase Three. 
And don't forget ABC's new show "Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D." (#CoulsonLives)

So yeah, Iron Man 3 opened the next Phase of operation, and it had to work as a stand alone movie as well as part of the series. Plus with a different director from the other two Iron Man movie, it was going to be new ball game. 

How did it work out? Brilliant! I loved it. It contained everything an Iron Man movie should contain; Tony Stark's Wit, big explosion action scenes, humour, a bit of growing up, references to other Marvel movies/characters, fun end credit scene a cameo from Stan Lee, etc. The plot was a little silly but that's part of the fun. The other movies in this Phase have a lot to live up to as this is just the opening. But i have faith.

The new Thor trailer came out the same week as Iron Man 3 was released in the UK, and it looks amazing too. This is encouraging a whole new generation to get into comics and superheroes. 

I don't want to say too much and spoil anything for those who haven't yet seen it. To those people i say this, go see it. It's worth it. It has everything you need. 

Coming Soon

During the next few days, i have a couple of reviews which i will be publishing. So keep you're eyes open, for i have the following waiting in the wings:

• Film Review - Iron Man 3
• Book Review - Dead Ever After by Charlaine Harris
• Book Vs Movie - Let The Right One In

2013 Reading Challenge

1. The Night Eternal - Guillermo Del Toro
2. Bloodlist - P.N. Elrod
3. Zom-B Underground - Darren Shan
4. Life Blood - P.N. Elrod
5. Blood Circle - P.N. Elrod
6. Kitty and the Dead Man's Hand - Carrie Vaughn
7. Fifty Sheds Of Grey - C.T. Grey
8. Good Omens - Terry Pratchett & Neil Gaiman
9. Art In The Blood - P.N. Elrod
10. Fire In The Blood - P.N. Elrod
11. Blood On The Water - P.N. Elrod
12. Warm Bodies - Isaac Marion
13. Married In Green - Seanan McGuire
14. Neverwhere - Neil Gaiman*
15. Zom-B City - Darren Shan
16. Discount Armageddon - Seanan McGuire
17. Kitty Raises Hell - Carrie Vaughn
18. Sweet Poison Wine - Seanan McGuire
19. Deadlocked - Charlaine Harris (reread)
20. Dead Ever After - Charlaine Harris 
21. A Bad Beginning - 
22. Let The Old Dreams Die - John Ajvide Lindqvist
23. The Vampire Diaries: The Unseen - L.J. Smith (creator) 

If you would like to read a full review on any of the above books, please feel free to leave a comment. Also comment if you wish to recommend anything. I love recommendations :)

This list will be updated throughout the year.

*audio/drama