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50 books. 50 movies. 2015. (Follow Format in OP!)

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TestMonkey - 21/50 Books | 21/50 Movies​

Books


  • Maskerade by Terry Pratchett
  • Acting: The First Six Lessons by Richard Boleslavsky
  • Feet of Clay by Terry Pratchett
  • Hogfather by Terry Pratchett
  • Chasing the Moon by A. Lee Martinez
  • Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) by Mindy Kaling
  • I Hate Everyone...Starting with Me by Joan Rivers
  • Jingo by Terry Pratchett
  • Student Loans edited by Dedria Bryfonski
Movies


  • Bleach: Hell Verse
  • Kite Liberator
  • Myq Kaplan: Small, Dork and Handsome
  • Mr. Peabody & Sherman
  • You Laugh But It's True
  • Trevor Noah: African American
  • The Fluffy Movie
  • Iliza Shlesinger: Freezing Hot
  • Ralphie May: Unruly
Still keeping a really good pace. Going to try to get up to date with Discworld this year.
 
February update:
Hmm, could've been better, could've been worse. At least I balanced it out this month - finished 2 books and saw 2 movies.

American Gods was interesting, and first book by Gaiman that I actually finished (started reading Neverwhere once, and never finished it). I enjoyed that road-trip aspect of it the most. Also read a collection of columns by my favourite columnist from the Balkans, and enjoyed it very much, even though it was a collection of his sports columns, and I'm not a big sports guy (should've seen it coming, the book was called "Diego Armando and Seven Dwarfs" after all).

On the movie front, I saw Snowpiercer and Nightcrawler. Snowpiercer was ok (I liked that surrealism of the wagons they moved through), and Nightcrawler was even better, although I hated Gyllenhaal's guts in it. He really nailed that misanthropic/slimy bastard feel.
 

Glaurungr

Member
Glaurungr - 30/50 books | 57/50 movies​

Update:

Books:

  • Atle Hansson - Frilans! En komplett håndbok for frilansere (2008)
  • Bruce Holsinger - A Burnable Book (2014)
  • J.R.R. Tolkien and Christopher Tolkien (ed.) - Morgoth's Ring: The History of Middle-earth - Volume X (1993)
  • Kristian Hall - Opp fra avgrunnen (2015)
  • Merete Morken Andersen - Skriveboka (2008)
  • Robert Bennett Jackson - City of Stairs (2014)
  • Velle Espeland - Spøkelse! Hvileløse gjengangere i tradisjon og historie (2002)
  • Øyvind Johnsen - Slaget om Narvik: Sydfronten (2009)

  • Kamala Das - Tørketid (2000)
  • Robert Jordan - Winter's Heart (2000)
  • Seamus Heaney - Door into the Dark (1969)

Movies:

  • Dr. No - Terence Young (1962)
  • Field of Dreams - Phil Alden Robinson (1989)
  • Mr. & Mrs. Smith - Doug Liman (2005)
  • Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb - Shawn Levy (2014)
  • Nightcrawler - Dan Gilroy (2014)
  • Pink Floyd The Wall - Alan Parker (1982)
  • Superman Returns - Bryan Singer (2006)
  • The Big Lebowski - Joel Coen (1998)
  • The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1 - Francis Lawrence (2014)
  • Whiplash - Damien Chazelle (2014)
 

choodi

Banned
Update for February

Books
  • Second Foundation [audio book] - Isaac Asimov (B)
  • Foundation's Edge [audio book] - Isaac Asimov (A)
  • Foundation and Earth [audio book] - Isaac Asimov (B)
  • Prelude to Foundation [audio book] - Isaac Asimov (B)

Movies
  • Sex My British Job (D)
 
February update!

You Are Viewtiful - 9/50 (+4) Books | 7/50 (+4) Movies

Books

  • February 12 - Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone by J. K. Rowling - ★★★★
  • February 15 - The Aquariums of Pyongyang by Kang Chol-Hwan - ★★★★
  • February 23 - Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces that Shape Our Decisions by Dan Ariely - ★★★★
  • February 27 - Mockingjay: The Final Book of The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins - ★★★★★

Movies

  • February 4 - The Hunger Games (2012) - ★★★★
  • February 8 - The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014) - ★
  • February 18 - Snatch (2000) - ★★★★
  • February 28 - The Hunger Games 2: Catching Fire (2013) - ★★★★★

---

I don't think I've ever read this much in one year before. I was 90% sure I was going to fail this challenge but I seem to be hanging on, and god damn it's awesome! :p
 
Update!


Pretty bad, I only completed a book this month and left 2 pending. And also no movies yet, but I have my eye on some for March.

The book I read, Battle Royale has a cult following, and predates the Hunger Games by quite some years. Having seen only the first movie of that series, I can see were the initial comparisons came from, although the plot development is very different - this book has people that know each other (classmates, friends, lovers) killing each other, while Katniss competes for survival against guys she has never seen before. That makes the tone much different, and the stakes feel closer to home.
 

Mumei

Member
Update!

Mumei - 22/50 Books | 16/50 Movies

Books
  1. Knife of Dreams: Book Eleven of The Wheel of Time, by Robert Jordan
  2. The Gathering Storm: Book Twelve of The Wheel of Time, by Robert Jordan & Brandon Sanderson
  3. Towers of Midnight: Book Thirteen of The Wheel of Time, by Robert Jordan & Brandon Sanderson
  4. A Memory of Light: Book Fourteen of The Wheel of Time, by Robert Jordan & Brandon Sanderson
  5. Brainstorm: The Flaws in the Science of Sex Differences, by Rebecca M. Jordan-Young
  6. Flying Dinosaurs: How Fearsome Reptiles Became Birds, by John Pickrell
  7. New Spring: The Novel - The Wheel of Time: In the Beginning, by Robert Jordan
  8. The Search for Modern China, by Jonathan D. Spence
  9. Wonder Woman Unbound: The Curious History of the World's Most Famous Heroine
  10. Ovid's Erotic Poems: Amores and Ars Amatoria

Movies
  1. Battle Royale
  2. Kingsman: The Secret Service
  3. The Maze Runner
  4. Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief

This was a rather comics and television heavy month. :p
 
Threads - 9/50 books l 41/50 films

Books:
4. Naked In Death - JD Robb - ★★★
5. Michelle: A Biography - Liza Mundy - ★★
6. The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins - ★★½
7. Catching Fire - Suzanne Collins - ★★★
8. The Social Justice Advocate's Handbook: A Guide To Gender - Sam Killermann - ★★★½
9. Mockingjay - Suzanne Collins - ★½

Films:
17. 22 Jump Street (2014) - Phil Lord, Christopher Miller - ★★★
18. Gone Girl (2014) - David Fincher - ★★★½
19. The Maze Runner (2014) - Wes Ball - ★★
20. Fury (2014) - David Ayer - ★★★
21. Why Don't You Play In Hell? (2013) - Shion Sono - ★★★
22. The Town That Dreaded Sundown (2014) - Alfonso Gomez-Rejon - ★★½
23. Milk (2008) - Gus Van Sant - ★★★★
24. Dead Poets Society (1989) - Peter Weir - ★★★★½
25. Kill Your Darlings (2013) - John Krokidas - ★★★
26. American Beauty (1999) - Sam Mendes - ★★★★½
27. The Silence (2010) - Baran bo Odar - ★★★
28. Lilting (2014) - Hong Khaou - ★★★★★
29. Starry Eyes (2014) - Kevin Kolsch, Dennis Widmyer - ★★★★
30. Snowpiercer (2013) - Joon-ho Bong - ★★★★
31. Barefoot (2014) - Andrew Fleming - ★★½
32. Force Majeure (2014) - Ruben Östlund - ★★★★
33. Let's Scare Jessica To Death (1971) - John D. Hancock - ★★★★½
34. For The Bible Tells Me So (2007) - Daniel G. Karslake - ★★★
35. The ABCs of Death 2 (2014) - Multiple directors - ★★
36. Boyhood (2014) - Richard Linklater - ★★★★★
37. Housebound (2014) - Gerard Johnstone - ★★★★
38. The Deaths of Ian Stone (2007) - Dario Piana - ★½
39. Santa Sangre (1989) - Alejandro Jodorowsky - ★★★½
40. The Funhouse (1981) - Tobe Hooper - ★★
41. Se7en - David Fincher - ★★★★★

Favorite book of Feb: The Social Justice Advocate's Handbook: A Guide To Gender
Favorite film of Feb: Lilting

Not a great month for books but I watched a lot of great films at least.
 

Guamu

Member
Update for February

I read so much this month that it's ridiculous, last week alone I probably got around 1500+ pages. And none of it count towards this challenge as it all was work related stuff. Bad month for me.

Still, i'm at a much better pace that last year and this got me to dust off my long time neglected blog.


Books
  1. Ciencia Ficción Selección 2 - Varios (180)★★★★☆ - A compilation of several short stories (and a novella) published on the 70s. I really like this kind of books. Usually I can find several lost treasures by writers that otherwise I would never read.
  2. David Starr, ranger del espacio [David Starr, Space Ranger] - Isaac Asimov (188) ★★☆☆☆ Being an Asimov completionist, I'm determined to read the complete Lucky Starr series. But this first volume really wasn't anything special. For an origin story this one is very plain.


Movies
  • Captain America: The First Avenger (2011. dir. Joe Johnston)★★★☆☆
  • Happy Feet (2006, dir. George Miller)★★★☆☆
  • Lupin III - Farewell to Nostradamus [ルパン三世 くたばれ!ノストラダムス]★★★☆☆
 
No update from me this month. I got really sick this month which sucked up most of my free time. All I managed was to finish three shows (Mekakucity Actors, Knights of Sidonia, Parks and Rec).
 
Nearly forgot to do an uppppdate!


Books
Barrel Fever - David Sedaris ★★★
What I Talk about When I Talk about Running - Haruki Murakami ★★★★
How to Win Friends and Influence People - Dale Carnegie ★★★
I Was Told There'd Be Cake - Sloane Crosley ★★★★

Movies
The Raid 2 ★★★★★
Norwegian Wood ★★½
Kingsman: The Secret Service ★★★★
Paper Planes ★★
Citizenfour ★★★★
The Internet's Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Schwartz ★★★½

I was making good progress on books but I've been stalled for 1-2 weeks on Brief Interviews with Hideous Men by David Foster Wallace. While DFW is one of my favourite writers and this book is captivating in parts, it's something that only sometimes I can get motivated to sit down and read because he's so verbose and unusual in his style.
 
I'm on track for movies. Books, however, yikes.

Just moved a couple weeks ago and I'm finally settled into my new place. Will have a new TV coming in less than a week, so I expect my movie totals to increase exponentially.

Of course, I'll be working, but there's always time for movies.
 

rickyson1

Member
end of February update:

rickyson1- 13/50 books | 4/50 movies

Books:

Half the World by Joe Abercrombie
Hounded by Kevin Hearne
Hexed by Kevin Hearne
Hammered by Kevin Hearne
Tricked by Kevin Hearne
Trapped by Kevin Hearne
Hunted by Kevin Hearne
Shattered by Kevin Hearne

Movies:

Interstellar
Catch Me If You Can
The Wolf of Wall Street

bit of a slow month coming up for me probably,moving on to another new(to me) author and after reading a LOT towards the back half of February i'm not really feeling it so probably won't do very much reading this month
 
I have a very important and serious question. So Top Gun was added to Netflix streaming today. I've "seen" this movie 2 or 3 times now but I've been black out drunk every time and don't remember it. Can I add this to my count if I watch it again? Or would I be cheating?
 
I have a very important and serious question. So Top Gun was added to Netflix streaming today. I've "seen" this movie 2 or 3 times now but I've been black out drunk every time and don't remember it. Can I add this to my count if I watch it again? Or would I be cheating?
If you literally remember nothing of the movie, I don't see how you could really say you've ever "watched" it. You've basically been in the room when it was playing :p
 

Anas

Banned
March Update

Anas - 11/50 books | 43/50 movies

Books :
1. Fifty Shades of Grey ★★☆☆☆
Well, there was a good funny moments, but there was a lot of emails and sexuality in lines.

2. Thirteen Reason Why ★★★☆☆
Interesting book in the beginning but there's a reason or two you'll find it silly and won't suicide for it

3. Mockingjay ★★☆☆☆
No hunger games in this one.. It felt boring in the first chapters but the ending worth it.

4. Fifty Shades Darker ★★★☆☆
At least it have some action in it, but not quite what you'll expect, and it's basically coping Twilight.. and it's so obivious.

5. Insurgent ★★☆☆☆
Does any of these books that I read getting any good? I got confused in the book cause I didn't read the first one, only watched the movie which is very different than the book

6. Attack on Titan Chapter 65 ★★★☆☆
a lot of secrets has been unveiled in this Chapter, pretty much soon the story will be more clear.

7. Attack on Titan Chapter 66 ★★★★☆
Best thing Historia did sense she ever appeared.

8. Attack on Titan 67 ★★★★☆
Wow another weird Ttian.. this time is huge.

Movies :
1. If I Stay ★★☆☆☆
The movie really have the potential to make you cry with the good plot, unfortunately the direction sucks and Chloe Mortez performance could give us better, but she sucked.

2. The Roommate ★★☆☆☆
A good teenager's movie have TV stars cast that is so good looking, the movie was fun but not that excellent like most of thriller movies, is like watching a CW's TV movie.

3. Clueless ★★★★☆
A movie that shows us not all movies about high school girls are suck, this movie was the start of proving that, and led and inspire good movies like Mean Girls, Easy A.

4. Nightcrawler ★★★★★
Jake Gyllenhaal is one of the best actors of his generation, giving us a good performance, and also the movie really fun for causal people who doesn't considered hardcore.

5. The Vow ★★★☆☆
If Rachel McAdams name's appears on romantic movie poster don't regret and watch it, cause this she gave so much of this genre.

6. Ghost ★★★★★
Wow. where this movie has been all life, it was excellent, funny, touchy, thrilling a masterpiece of old-school movies.

7. Pirates of The Caribbean ★★★★☆
A movie where Johnny Depp doesn't wear a full make-up.. or does he? playing Black Flag and watching this movie in the same period was kinda.. Deja Vu.

8. The Interview ★★☆☆☆
Well thank god the movie didn't make that much of success, because it was not bad but not even good, the thing I liked about this movie is the references of Pop culture.

9. Rudderless★★★★☆
Amazing movie where Selena Gomez doesn't do auto-tune, with really a dark twist in the end.

10. Alexander and The Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day ★★★☆☆
A good PG-13 movie form Disney where they''re allowed to say the word "Penis". and Again.. Bella Throne is the mean girl.

11. Boyhood ★★★★☆
Simple story of family or actually a boy and how all his life went through 12 years, all performance suck except for Patricia Arquette, but the movie is really touching.

12. Birdman ★★★★★
Unlike boyhood, Birdman lead cast gave us a notable performances like Emma Stone's, Edward Norton's , and the most important Michael Keaton's.

13. Camp X-Ray ★★★☆☆
Will the Musilms will feel the racism for sure, Kristen Stewart give us her best, but not enough yet, her acting carrer could get better after seeing this movie.

14. Precious ★★★★☆
The movie good but I hate Lee Daniel's directing with stupid scene's like the one that show Lenny Kravits for the first time in movie.

15. Johnny English ★★★☆☆
A nice 007 parody, Mr.Bean never been cooler and funnier. you'll enjoy watching this with you family.

16. The Purge Anarchy ★★★☆☆
Wow. definitely better than the last one, this time it's action and thriller movie, unlike the first one that tried to be a horror n' slasher movie.

17. No Reservation ★★★☆☆
Still keep watching it, maybe I'll talented at cooking as much as Aaron Lockhart.

18. Parker ★★☆☆☆
A good action movie, but no much of action scene's, it felt like a dramatic movie when you see Jennifer Lopez complaining about her situation.

19. Prom Night ★☆☆☆☆
Doesn't gave any shit to Slasher movies genre but Idris Elba was good in it.

20. Pulp Fiction ★★★★★
I loved how all parts of movie was connected, and it's really a masterpiece, I wish Uma Thurman won an Oscar. and god I laughed hard when Samuel said his famous sentence.

21. Life as We Know it ★★★☆☆
Good and a fun movie, Kathrine Heigl printed her name on RomCom genre.

22. Her ★★★★☆
A movie sees that lonely people could be happy in the future , loved the colors of movie environment which been delivered to us by a good photography,

23. The Giver ★★★☆☆
Loved the plot and the movie until the middle of it, but the ending.. not so much, casting Taylor Swift was only for grabbing her loyalties.

24. Chicago ★★★★☆
I'm not into musical but this movie have a good story, but seriously why did Renee not win an Oscar for this? she was better than Cathrine Zeta-Jones.

25. Whiplash ★★★★☆
I thought J.K Simmons could never be more meaner than Spider-Man but he did :/

26. Taken 3 ★★★☆☆
It was good, but the series should've ended with first one.

27. Mr.Pebody and Sherman ★★★★☆
Really fun movie even for grown ups, it have a really good material.

28. The Boy Next Door ★★☆☆☆
Jennifer Lopez is really old :/

29. The Hunger Games : Mockingjay - Part 1 ★★★★☆
Better than I Imagined.. I thought it would be boring but it wasn't for someone read the book.

30. Fifty Shades of Grey ★★☆☆☆
Well they didn't used the martial that I liked in the book, it's good and fifty shades of fucked up in the same time, don't waste your time if you don't want to masturbate.

31. Still Alice ★★★★☆
a real Oscar-worthy made me feel like crying.. but I didn't XD, Julianne Moore give us the performance of her life.

32. Annie 2014 ★★★☆☆
The movie was entertaining for family, but I hated the over auto tune, Jaime Foxx was only person who can sing for real.

33. Big Hero 6 ★★★★★
We need more Disney and Marvel collaboration, this was the best animated CG movie that Disney presented.

34. Chef ★★★★☆
Masterchef Miami. P.S: Don't watch it and you're hungry (&). why it's only 1:45 Hour :( it could have been longer.

35. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles ★★★☆☆
I thought it was bad but it was good actually, and what's with the DC's reference.

36. Pirates of The Caribbean Dead Man Treasure ★★★☆☆
Deeper than the first one.. but the first still simple and better.

37. Begin Again ★★★★★
Kiera Knightly desrves a Grammy ! her voice is so better than nowadays singers.

38. Pride and Prejudice ★★★★☆
felt like it was Cinderella's movie put more realistic, still a really good romantic movie.

39. Into The Woods ★☆☆☆☆
A really bad musical and kids movie ! the story is horrible and songs is worst it's not even close to catchy, and learns the kids that is okay to cheat on thier wives as long they were in the woods? WTH?

40. Intersteallar ★★★★★
I can't describe how this movie is the one of 2014's best movies thank you Nolan for this masterpiece.

41. Sister Act ★★☆☆☆
It was a normal movie, not for sure "The Funniest Movie of All Time", oh god I was expecting somethin' better

42. The Equalizer ★★☆☆☆
Sorry Denzel.. but there is only one Liam Nesson, and you not the one.

43. Johnny English Reborn ★★★★☆
oh god.. it's much better than the previous, and so much funnier and embarrassing even. I request another sequel to finish this amazing trilogy.
 

A Human Becoming

More than a Member
Forgot to post my February update:

Books
  1. Engaging Students with Poverty in Mind: Practical Strategies for Raising Achievement - February 5th: ★★★½
  2. Love Does - February 15th: ★★
Movies
  1. IP Man - February 2nd:★★★
  2. Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa - February 9th: ★★★★
  3. The Way - February 15th: ★
  4. Nightcrawler - February 16th: ★★★★★
  5. Whiplash - February 20th: ★★★★
  6. Still Alice - February 20th: ★★½
  7. Selma - February 21st: ★★★★
  8. American Sniper - February 22nd: ★★★
  9. Bram Stoker's Dracula - February 24th: ½
  10. The Evil Dead - February 26th: ★★½
Lagging behind in reading no surprise. Hoping to change that this month.
 

donny2112

Member
Am close to the character post limit with my first post, so continuing the detailed descriptions here.

Detailed writeups on Books 1-9 and Movies 1-9
Detailed writeups on Books 18-26 and Movies 18-26
Detailed writeups on Books 27-39 and Movies 27-49
Detailed writeups on Books 40-50 and Movies 50-60
Detailed writeups on Books 51-57 and Movies 61-66

Books
  1. Cast No Shadow (Star Trek: TOS, 360 pages) (2011) - ★★★★★ (Jan. 3, 2015)
  2. Hunger Games (374 pages) (2009) - ★★★★☆ (Jan. 6, 2015)
  3. Hunger Games: Catching Fire (389 pages) (2010) - ★★★★☆ (Jan. 9, 2015)
  4. Oliver Twist (264 pages) (1837) - ★★★★★ (Jan. 20, 2015)
  5. Artful: A Novel (277 pages) (2014) - ★★★★☆ (Jan. 27, 2015)
  6. Cold and Broken Hallelujah (Long Beach Homicide series) (283 pages) (2014) - ★★☆☆☆ (Jan. 31, 2015)
  7. The Klingon Art of War (qeS'a) (160 pages) (2014) - ★★★★★ (Feb. 3, 2015)
  8. Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone (309 pages) (1998) - ★★★★★ (Feb. 7, 2015)
  9. Star Trek Mirror Universe: Rise Like Lions (401 pages) (2011) - ★★★★★ (Feb. 10, 2015)
  10. Girl on a Wire (375 pages) (2014) - ★★★★★ (Feb. 17, 2015)
    Second book with no tie to a series or some other meta-type reason for reading, and this one turned out much better! Coming of age book for a young girl, written in first person (but not like the annoying way of Hunger Games), in the environs of a circus, with circus history, mystery, and family rivalries.
    And a touch of magic.
    Enjoy learning about spheres of knowledge that I don't know that well but find interesting, and the circus certainly qualifies. Enjoyed reading about the ins and outs (without getting bogged down in them) and the ancient history of the Maroni and Garcia families (wirewalkers and flyers, respectively) and how that affects their families today. All set to the backdrop of a sentimental and rich man who wants to see if a circus reborn can work in today's world, but who doesn't come from circus background himself. It's all really neat, didn't drag on ever (they'd just skip ahead if there was a boring stretch of weeks) and the ending was
    refreshing and upbeat!
    Glad to have read this book, so glad for Amazon having given it away. :)
  11. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (341 pages) (1999) - ★★★★☆ (Feb. 25, 2015)
    Again, really nice to see the further explanation of things in the book that didn't quite make sense in the movies. Nothing earth-shattering, but the Ginny/Harry stuff was much more pronounced here than in the movies. Also the role of
    Fawkes and the Sorting Hat in the final confrontation with the Basillisk and Riddle
    made a lot more sense and really improved their worth for the story, in my opinion. Good book. Gonna re-watch the third movie now to get ready for the third book. :)
  12. Star Trek: Myriad Universe: Shattered Light (489 pages) (2010) - ★★★☆☆ (Mar. 2, 2015)
    This is a collection of three distinct alternate takes on Star Trek reality.
    1) What if Picard was able to keep the Borg away from the deflector array weapon plans long enough for Riker to be successful in stopping the Borg in "Best of Both Worlds, Part 1." 2) What if Vulcan had not found logic 2000 years ago and instead remained a warlike race with unbridled passions while the rest of the region proceeded generally in the usual direction. 3) What if the tribbles hadn't found the poisoned grain on K-7 station in TOS, Arne Darvin was not outed, and the Klingons got Sherman's Planet, with a focus on how Nilz Baris's (the pompous undersecretary of Agriculture from the TOS episode) life was changed and that effect on other ensuing events.
    The main issue is that the general form is "here's the change, and here's how things are worse than the original timeline because of it. Oh, and here's a story describing on how it's trying to sort of get back to the reality you're familiar with." The first two follow that format (in a general sense), but the third one (
    the non-tribbles one
    ) does finally give a unique take on history due to a fairly minor change. That's really how they all should've been done, but that kind of intricated planning probably isn't easy. Kind of a long book to have 2/3rds of it be flat and the last third, while better executed in story, tries to confuse you with flashbacks within flashbacks to fill in the story. :lol Can't strongly recommend buying the book, but an interesting read if you can get access to it (at least the 3rd one).
  13. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (435 pages) (1999) - ★★★★★ (Mar. 5, 2015)
    Things are really picking up speed now with this book. Especially nice is that it explains so many things about the movie that were left unexplained/confused, and then gives so much more insight into Snape, in particular. The movie really could have done so much more to avoid this type of confusion, but I guess they figured it wouldn't be a big deal. Wrong! Stuff had bugged me that it didn't quite fit right, and now it does with the book. Nice! :D
  14. Star Trek: Typhon Pact: Zero Sum Game (336 pages) (2010) - ★★★★★ (Mar. 8, 2015)
    First of seven Typhon Pact books, and the books that take place after that include dealings with the Typhon Pact as well. Great opening volleys in what is sure to be a long and drawn out Cold War (if it doesn't heat up by some point in the seven books). For those unfamiliar with the Typhon Pact,
    due to the Borg ravaging a ton of the Federation and allies before being completely removed from the galactic stage themselves, the Federation/Klingons joined up with half of the Romulan Empire, the remains of Cardassia and several others to support each other. In response, the Breen, Tholians, Kirshaya (religious zealots from New Frontier series), the other half of the Romulan Empire, the Gorn, and the Tzenkethi to form the Typhon Pact and not be at a stategic disadvantage to the new Federation alliances
    . This focuses on Bashir and Sarina Douglas (genetically improved girl from DS9 series that Bashir likes) going undercover play Spy vs. Spy with the Typhon Pact. Lots of crazy stuff happens and it really goes a long way to explaining the deal with the Breen. Looking forward to the rest of the books!
    Personal spoiler:
    I'm glad to see my attempts at recognizing psychpathic behaviour in people (at least in novels/movies) is improving. Gives me hope that if I'm ever getting to know a girl IRL that I'll be able to identify those same clues (and not ignore them) in order to avoid a repeat of my first marriage. That weighs heavily on me.
  15. Ticker (267 pages) (2014) - ★★☆☆☆ (Mar. 18, 2015)
    I think I'm getting burned out on "young girl coming of age" books. Ugh. Another first person book (not annoying like Hunger Games, though) and set in a Victorian/mechanical age not of this reality (and frankly not of any reality). Girl with wind up clock for a heart falls for the leader of the private army in charge of order for the city with apparently NO official oversight. Seriously. Everyone just trusts him to be good and do what's right, but he's rich and owns (literally) the only police in the story. Maybe in theory the mayor is supposed to be over him, but it doesn't happen. EVER. Benevolent dictator? Anyways, just a lot of very loose storytelling. Has enjoyable personal interactions, but the reality it takes place in balks at existence (
    and not just due to the presence of clairvoyancy as a real thing
    ). Oh, well. On to the next Harry Potter book that's almost as long as the two previous books combined! :lol
  16. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (752 pages) (2002) - ★★★★★ (Mar. 24, 2015)
    Having only seen the movie before, this book was a breath of fresh air! So much more is covered here than in the movie, along with the usual much better explanation of some of the stuff from the movie. The Barty Crouch sub-plot, Hagrid's summer duties (as mentioned in the next film), Voldemort's soliloquy in front of the
    Death Eaters in the graveyard
    explaining so much, Dobby (!), better explanation of house-elves (
    and the S.P.E.W.
    ), Dumbledore's true brillance and power
    that we know to be aided by the Elder Wand from later movies
    , Snape (so much more evil in the books but still better explained here), Sirius (!), Krum is a real person now, and the first I've heard of Bagman! :lol They really should've started splitting the movies into two with this book, I think. Its length definitely warranted it (twice as long as previous books) and they ended up leaving so much stuff out of the movie that it's almost a pity there's not a second part to it. Well, anyways, well worth the read, and looking forward to the next book, most assuredly! :D
  17. Star Trek: Typhon Pact: Seize the Fire (488 pages) (2010) - ★☆☆☆☆ (Apr. 2, 2015)
    Gah, that was a TERRIBLE book! I sort of figured it would be with Michael A. Martin writing it, but it was part of the Typhon Pact series, so I had to read it. Thankfully, this is the only book of the remaining Star Trek queue of mine that was written by him. Doesn't understand the characters, so much useless time spent on thoughts and paths the real characters would not have taken, plot points that make NO sense until you realize that he needed that to occur to in order to explain how XYZ was going to happen. Just ridiculous and telling of someone who just did not think through the story and motivations of the characters before writing the book. As said, expected it with this author, but that didn't make it any better to go through. First ran across this author with a Star Trek: Section 31 book called Rogue. Love Section 31 stories, but in that book, Section 31's "security" was so lax that they wouldn't have lasted 30 minutes as a secret organization, much less 100+ years. "If you decide not to take this offer by Section 31, be sure not to mention it to anyone else." Ha! Guess you could describe his issue as having everything take too informal a tone. Security is lax. Command structure is lax. Everybody's lax, and the world magically falls into place for them. Ugh. For this particular story, he turns Riker (Captain of the Titan here) into an indecisive, helpless character who needs everyone else taking the big steps for him. Also has a race of grasshopper-like creatures on a planet that just take a "Hey, how do you do?" attitude toward their first contact vistors of humanoids. Completely ridiculous. Oh, and the orbiting terraforming/Genesis Wave producing platform
    is alive, thought to be the creator of the Gorn, and can control subspace communication for the whole solar system
    , but it can't protect itself, at all. So stupid. Just blatantly contrived plot points to make things magically fall into place in a story without rhyme or reason. :/
  18. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (870 pages) (2003) - ★★★★★ (Apr. 22, 2015)
  19. Star Trek: Typhon Pact: Rough Beasts of Empire (387 pages) (2011) - ★★★★★ (Apr. 29, 2015)
  20. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (672 pages) (2005) - ★★★★★ (May 4, 2015)
  21. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (791 pages) (2007) - ★★★★★ (May 14, 2015)
  22. Star Trek: Typhon Pact: Paths of Disharmony (455 pages) (2011) - ★★★★☆ (May 19, 2015)
  23. Star Trek: Typhon Pact: Plagues of Night (385 pages) (2012) - ★★★★★ (May 24, 2015)
  24. Guardians of the Night (A Gideon and Sirius Novel) (352 pages) (2015) - ★★★★★ (May 24, 2015)
  25. Star Trek: Typhon Pact: Raise the Dawn (394 pages) (2012) - ★★★★★ (May 27, 2015)
  26. Death of a Chimney Sweep (A Hamish Macbeth Mystery) (228 pages) (2012) - ★★☆☆☆ (June 5, 2015)
  27. Death of a Kingfisher (A Hamish Macbeth Mystery) (274 pages) (2004) - ★★☆☆☆ (June 9, 2015)
  28. Star Trek: Typhon Pact: Brinkmanship (334 pages) (2012) - ★★★★☆ (June 12, 2015)
  29. Pulling up Stakes (113 pages) (2012) - ★★★★☆ (June 17, 2015)
  30. Pulling up Stakes, Part 2 (147 pages) (2012) - ★★★★☆ (June 20, 2015)
  31. Flirting with Felicity (237 pages) (2015) - ★★★☆☆ (June 26, 2015)
  32. Road to Samarcand (269 pages) (1955) - ★★★★☆ (July 8, 2015)
  33. Treasure Island (183 pages) (1883) - ★★★★★ (July 11, 2015)
  34. Star Trek: New Frontier: The Returned, Part 1 (164 pages) (2015) - ★★★★★ (July 12, 2015)
  35. Alice in Wonderland (122 pages) (1865) - ★★★☆☆ (July 21, 2015)
  36. The Martian: A Novel (369 pages) (2011) - ★★★★★ (July 29, 2015)
  37. Einstein Prophecy (327 pages) (2015) - ★★★☆☆ (August 12, 2015)
  38. Charlotte's Web (184 pages) (1952) - ★★★★☆ (August 16, 2015)
  39. The Mermaid's Sister (231 pages) (2014) - ★★★★☆ (August 28, 2015)
  40. Boundary Crossed (302 pages) (2015) - ★★★★★ (September 6, 2015)
  41. A Dark Lure (408 pages) (2015) - ★★★★★ (September 8, 2015)
  42. Dead Spots (287 pages) (2012) - ★★★★★ (September 9, 2015)
  43. Crow Hollow (335 pages) (2015) - ★★★★☆ (September 11, 2015)
  44. New Frontier: The Returned, Part II (161 pages) (2015) - ★★★★★ (September 12, 2015)
  45. New Frontier: The Returned, Part III (171 pages) (2015) - ★★★★★ (September 13, 2015)
  46. 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (295 pages) (1870) - ★★★★☆ (September 22, 2015)
  47. Flee (247 pages) (2012) - ★★★☆☆ (October 4, 2015)
  48. Trail of Dead (299 pages) (2013) - ★★★★★ (October 6, 2015)
  49. Arena Mode, Book 1 (299 pages) (2013) - ★★★★☆ (October 8, 2015)
  50. Once Bitten (234 pages) (2015) - ★★★☆☆ (October 14, 2015)
  51. Disenchanted (Land of Dis) (221 pages) (2012) - ★★★★☆ (October 17, 2015)
  52. The Good Neighbor (205 pages) (2015) - ★★☆☆☆ (October 24, 2015)
  53. The Confession (417 pages) (2010) - ★★★☆☆ (October 31, 2015)
  54. Hunter's Trail (376 pages) (2014) - ★★★★☆ (November 3, 2015)
  55. Q are Cordially Invited... (eBook, est. 91 pages) (2014) - ★★★☆☆ (Feb. 21, 2015)
    +
    Malediction (64 pages) (2014) - ★★★★☆ (November 5, 2015)
  56. Kissing Mr. Right (269 pages) (2015) - ★★☆☆☆ (November 23, 2015)
  57. Killing Floor (Jack Reacher Book 1) (562 pages) (1997) - ★★★★☆ (December 29, 2015)

Movies
  1. I, Frankenstein (2014) - ★★★☆☆ (Jan. 2, 2015)
  2. Chinese Zodiac (2012) - ★★★★☆ (Jan. 4, 2015)
  3. Great Expectations (2012) - ★★★★☆ (Jan. 8, 2015)
  4. Jane Eyre (2011) - ★★★☆☆ (Jan. 14, 2015)
  5. Blackhat (2015) - ★★★★☆ (Jan. 17, 2015)
  6. Selma (2015) - ★★★★★ (Jan. 19, 2015)
  7. The Interview (2014) - ★★★★☆ (Jan. 24, 2015)
  8. Black or White (2015) - ★★★★☆ (Jan. 31, 2015)
  9. The War of the Worlds (1953) - ★★☆☆☆ (Feb. 10, 2015)
  10. K-19: The Widowmaker (2002) - ★★★★☆ (Feb. 12, 2015)
    Story of one of the first Soviet nuclear submarines and all the problems it faced, including threat of nuclear meltdown while at sea. Basically a patriotic movie about men doing all they can and more for brotherhood and country. It just so happens that the country is the U.S.S.R. in this case. Looked up the story on Wikipedia after the movie, and the crew were nominated for the
    Nobel Peace Prize in 2006 for their efforts to avoid a nuclear meltdown that could've been mistaken for an intentional nuclear explosion in the North Atlantica and might've started WWIII
    . Good movie! Just finished re-watching Hunt for Red October before this, so interesting contrasts in ship design, submarine captain autonomy, and "comrade"ship among the submarine crews.
  11. The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water (2015) - ★★★☆☆ (Feb. 14, 2015)
    Good Spongebob Squarepants Movie! Would rank the first one as more "epic," whereas this one seemed more like a TV Movie in design with Bigscreen Movie production values. Liked Antonio Bandares in it, too!
  12. Jupiter Ascending (2015) - ★★★★☆ (Feb. 16, 2015)
    Online reviews seem to pan the story of the movie, but I liked it and didn't really have trouble following it. Enjoyed the practiced control of the royalty in their performances and it was a really interesting take on
    millenia old
    royal families. Also the idea of
    harvesting bio-substances from the young to rejuvenate the old is already being looked at and shown to be viable with mice
    , so it's not too much of a stretch to me that this could be a long-term view of ancient interstellar dynasties. The "Ascending" tagline seems ripe for becoming a trilogy (e.g. "Jupiter Commanding," "Jupiter Expansion," etc.), but the revenues for the movie look pretty bleak for any chance of that happening. Enjoyed seeing Mila Kunis in another movie after Oz, and her dad is Jarvis from Agent Carter! (Love recognizing characters from movies and then trying to find where I know them from! :D )
  13. Olympus Has Fallen (2013) - ★★★★☆ (Mar. 13, 2015)
    Watched this twice! Some of the special effects parts and outside the White House grounds stuff was creaky, but the Gerard Butler sections were great. Love the movies where it's one guy vs. the world (e.g. Riddick, Gladiator, Halo series in games). Also great to see another Aaron Eckhart movie. As a side note, it reunited Riddick: Pitch Black co-stars of Johns and the Captain of the freighter, though they were smaller parts here. Fun to see stuff like that. :)
  14. Frozen Fever w/ bonus Cinderella (2015) - ★★★★★ (Mar. 13, 2015)
    Frozen Fever was great, clever, catchy, and perfectly matched the tone of the movie with added doses of whimsicality. Hope Frozen 2 can capture the original movie's feel, as well!
    Cinderella was a great bonus movie to go along with Frozen Fever. It reunited Ms. Havesham and Estella from Great Expectations (as Fairy Godmother and even step-sister, respectively). Galadriel was the evil step-mother. Dr. Selvig from Thor was the
    evil
    Grand Duke. And Daedelus from The Storyteller: Greek Myths was the King. Great cast and wonderful way to play "Where have I seen this actor before?"! The story did a great job capturing the classic elements of the story, adding new subtleties/twists, and tying it all together in a magical way.
    After Maleficent last year, this was a great relief to see.
    Recommended, especially with kids!
  15. Emperor (2012) - ★★★★☆ (Mar. 15, 2015)
    Dry but entertaining movie, if you like following subtleties in motivations and wrinkles in rules to accomplish a goal. The ending wasn't as happy as I would've liked, but then real life often isn't.
    This is where historical fiction comes in! (But I digress.)
    Interesting to see the Lost guy on a new island, too. :)
  16. Run All Night (2015) - ★★★★☆ (Mar. 22, 2015)
    Good Liam Neeson movie. He really carried the depth of the main character well. Was nice to recognize a couple of other faces (e.g. Ed Harris), but Liam Neeson carried it. Summary: Exactly what it looked like in the previews. :) Do have to say that the ending wasn't as good as I'd hoped, but it also wasn't as bad as I feared.
    Could tell they were setting up Liam's character to die because he wrote down important information early as opposed to keeping it in his head as a bargaining chip. Was afraid they were going to have him kill himself at the end, so was very glad that didn't happen. They did have him end up dying, though. I think it would've been better for him to come clean while alive with the cops as penance for his crimes, but the writers saw fit to have him be killed off instead. :/
    Good movie otherwise, though, and recommended!
  17. Furious 7 (2015) - ★★★★☆ (Apr. 5, 2015)
    Great sendoff for Paul Walker. Movie was as far-fetched as all the Fast & Furious movies, but that doesn't diminish how fun they are. Glad that
    Lettie has her memory back
    and wish
    the guy from Fast & Furious: Tokyo Drift had more of a part
    . Rock was as over-the-top as ever, too. Fun flick!
  18. Insurgent (2015) - ★★★☆☆ (Apr. 11, 2015)
  19. Age of Adaline (2015) - ★★★★☆ (Apr. 25, 2015)
  20. Avengers: Age of Adaline Ultron (2015) - ★★★★☆ (May 2, 2015)
  21. Collateral Damage (2002) - ★★★☆☆ (May 6, 2015)
  22. Leon: The Professional (1994) - ★★★★☆ (May 12, 2015)
  23. Pitch Perfect 2 (2015) - ★★★★☆ (May 22, 2015)
  24. Tomorrowland (2015) - ★★★★☆ (May 25, 2015)
  25. Under the Skin (2013) - ★☆☆☆☆ (June 6, 2015)
  26. Inglorious Basterds (2009) - ★★★★☆ (June 7, 2015)
  27. Jurassic World (2015) - ★★★☆☆ (June 11, 2015)
  28. Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014) - ★★★★☆ (June 26, 2015)
  29. Agent Carter, Season 1 (2015) - ★★★★☆ (March 14, 2015)
  30. Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D, Season 2 (2015) - ★★★★☆ (July 1, 2015)
  31. Terminator: Genisys (2015) - ★★★★☆ (July 3, 2015)
  32. Inside Out (2015) - ★★★★☆ (July 11, 2015)
  33. Expendables 3 (2014) - ★★★★☆ (July 15, 2015)
  34. Sabotage (2014) - ★★☆☆☆ (July 15, 2015)
  35. Minions (2015) - ★★★☆☆ (July 19, 2015)
  36. Sherlock, Season 1 (2010) - ★★★★★ (July 20, 2015)
  37. Parks and Recreation, Season 1 (2009) - ★★★☆☆ (July 21, 2015)
  38. Parks and Recreation, Season 2 (2010) - ★★★★☆ (July 25, 2015)
  39. Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation (2015) - ★★★★☆ (July 31, 2015)
  40. Parks and Recreation, Season 3 (2011) - ★★★★☆ (July 31, 2015)
  41. Earth to Echo (2014) - ★★★☆☆ (August 2, 2015)
  42. Ant-Man (2015) - ★★★☆☆ (August 2, 2015)
  43. Parks and Recreation, Season 4 (2012) - ★★★★★ (August 6, 2015)
  44. Sherlock, Season 2 (2012) - ★★★★★ (August 11, 2015)
  45. WWII from Space (2012) - ★★★☆☆ (August 13, 2015)
  46. Straight Outta Compton (2015) - ★★★★★ (August 15, 2015)
  47. Parks and Recreation, Season 5 (2013) - ★★★★★ (August 20, 2015)
  48. Man From U.N.C.L.E. (2015) - ★★★★☆ (August 25, 2015)
  49. Pixels (2015) - ★★★☆☆ (August 28, 2015)
  50. Shanghai Noon (2000) - ★★★★☆ (September 2, 2015)
  51. Parks and Recreation, Season 6 (2014) - ★★★★★ (September 3, 2015)
  52. Zatoichi (2003) - ★★★☆☆ (September 9, 2015)
  53. Legend of the Drunken Master (2000) - ★★★☆☆ (September 16, 2015)
  54. The Scorch Trials (2015) - ★★★☆☆ (September 17, 2015)
  55. Hotel Transylvania 2 (2015) - ★★★★☆ (September 25, 2015)
  56. The Martian (2015) - ★★★★★ (October 1, 2015)
  57. Goosebumps (2015) - ★★★★☆ (October 15, 2015)
  58. The Guild (2007-2012) - ★★★★★ (October 24, 2015)
  59. Bridge of Spies (2015) - ★★★★☆ (October 24, 2015)
  60. Dracula (1931) - ★★☆☆☆ (October 25, 2015)
  61. Dracula (Spanish-language version) (1931) - ★★★☆☆ (October 25, 2015)
  62. Peanuts Movie (2015) - ★★★★☆ (November 5, 2015)
  63. Fantasia (1940) - ★★★☆☆ (November 15, 2015)
  64. Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 2 (2015) - ★★★★★ (November 18, 2015)
  65. Star Wars VII: The Force Awakens (2015) - ★★★★★ (December 17, 2015)
  66. Creed (2015) - ★★★★☆ (December 26, 2015)
 

tmarques

Member
I have a very important and serious question. So Top Gun was added to Netflix streaming today. I've "seen" this movie 2 or 3 times now but I've been black out drunk every time and don't remember it. Can I add this to my count if I watch it again? Or would I be cheating?

There's a movie in my list that gave me a serious case of déjà vu by the time it was almost over. I still have no idea whether I'd really seen it before or if it was just a case of a not-so original script. I decided it counts. Besides, I'm sure most of us won't have any trouble watching more than 50 movies this year.
 
allegate - 18/50 Books 13/50 Movies

Books
17. Bleeding Violet - Dia Reeves, Mar 4th, 3.5/5
18. Roadside Picnic - Arkady & Boris Strugatsky, Mar 6th, 5/5
19.

Movies

13. A Christmas Carol (2009), Mar 6th, 2/5
14.

Updated original post.

If you like Welcome to Night Vale, you should check out Bleeding Violet. If you like The Southern Reach trilogy, you should definitely check out Roadside Picnic.

If you like to not feel like you wasted an hour-plus of your time, stay far away from A Christmas Carol. There was no joy in it at all, I don't know why they thought it was a good idea.
 

kinoki

Illness is the doctor to whom we pay most heed; to kindness, to knowledge, we make promise only; pain we obey.
kinoki - 14 books | 25 movies

House of Cards set this week back a little when it came to movies. Too bad it turned out to be the worst of the three seasons. Not that it was bad, though.

Edit (2015-03-14): No new posts for an entire week so I'll just update this post with my additions. No books in the second week. Too much going on and In Search for Lost Time is long, even if it's just the first of seven books.

Books
  • The Last Tycoon (1941), F. Scott Fitzgerald - ★★★★ - It's hard to judge a work that isn't finished. But I really liked it. The structure and writing reminds me greatly of The Great Gatsby which is great since I consider it one of the best books ever written. Now I just need to read The Love of the Last Tycoon.

Movies

  • Daredevil (2003, dir. Mark Steven Johnson) - ★½ - In preparation for the Netflix-series I decided to watch Affleck wear the Daredevil mask. It was just as bad I was expecting. Perfect for those moments on a sunday morning when you're playing Farm Heroes Saga. Tone death and C-tier with some good actors. Colin Farrell is great as Bullseye and should have gotten his own movie.
  • Cowboys & Aliens (2011, dir. Jon Favreau) - ★★★ - I liked the mash-up but it's clear that they never moved past the original pitch. It feels like a half-baked concept. They could have made this into something interesting but they went with the first thing that everybody could agree on. Given more time in the oven and we might have had something really good.
  • Limitless (2011, dir. Neil Burger) - ★★★ - I tend to fall for these "person gets special abilities"-movies. It's good in that cheesy kind of way. It's atleast smart enough to call itself out that it isn't earned. Something these "get rich quick" movies tend to have a hard time flirting with. There's this movement in the world these days that success and intelligence is something that's a right, not something that has to be earned. But it stays a bit too close to comfort on that line.
  • Horns (2013, dir. Alexandre Aja) - ★★★½ - The movie is stuffed to the brim with overly simplified symbolism that gets the point across. It's shallow in a lot of places. But there are some parts that actually do resonate. Letting yourself become what is needed to get the task done. Admitting that there is no right answer and you just have to pick the sin you can live with. Those feelings are sincere even though they're buried in there.
  • Labyrinth (1986, dir. Jim Henson) - ★★½ - It's in its right called a classic. It most certainly is. It's got David Bowie doing what he does best. We have some amazing sets and fantastic puppets on display. Too bad that the glue holding it together has aged very poorly. Coming into this movie now I see the pieces and can value them accordingly but I can also acknowledge the shortcomings.
  • Robocop (2014, dir. José Padilha) - ★★½ - I enjoyed it far more than I expected. Too bad about the story though. It's got a really interesting build up. The ironic thing is that this is a far more interesting movie without the Robocop segments. If you hadn't put Robocop in it and rewritten the story without a super hero you would have had a far better movie. The third act comes out of nowhere and feels so out of character for just about every character.
  • Killing Them Softly (2012, dir. Andrew Dominik) - ★★★½ - Slow and very thought out. Too deliberate for my tastes. It's one of those Brad Pitt vehicles like World War Z and The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford. Like such it's designed to tell us that Brad Pitt is a good actor. He has the chops but it feels like talking about the movie boils down to talking about Brad.
 

donny2112

Member
I figure that at this point, it's probably better to just skip a February update and update at March. First few months of the year are so hectic, anyways, with people jumping on that starting the tracking in earnest a few months into the year might be the best route.
 
allegate - 18/50 Books, 17/50 Movies

14. Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, Mar 12th, 2.5/5
15. Lego DC Comics Super Heroes: Justice League vs. Bizarro League, Mar 14th, 2.5/5
16. Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, Mar. 14th, 3/5
17. Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb, Mar 15th, 3.5/5

Updated original post.

AatTHNGVBD was a mess. First the movie starts with a voice over and then, when that scene is revisited later in the movie, it gives you the exact opposite information. And then Donald Glover in a truly wasted role. This over Community S6? woah, dude.

I was excited to watch the Lego movie because I saw it had Diedrich Bader in it and I was wondering if it was going to be like The Brave and the Bold. Nope. He was Guy Gardner. Ugh, wasted. And it didn't help that the 'movie' was the main attraction but it was actually a sequel to the other episode on the disc: Batman was a member of the Justice League in the movie but they were recruiting him in the bonus episode. Weird.

Nausicaä was alright, though like most anime I feel like I'm missing half the story somewhere, whether it's from a poor translation or manga adaptation. There was just something off throughout. And I was confused when the pink dress she snuck out in was suddenly blue for no reason other than plot.

I'm not going to lie: I straight up cried at the end. Robin Williams died a week or so after my dad did so to see his last words on screen made me think of that and I just broke. It was an alright movie otherwise (why couldn't they bring back the same kid to be his son? That was weird.) and a better end to a trilogy than some series get. Dan Stevens was a weird heel, but I guess there needs to be a bad guy. Loved the Huge Ackman bit, especially when he tried to be Wolverine. So meta.
 

Peru

Member
Having watched the movie, it makes more sense and also seems to explain the issues I had with the book (i.e. easier to understand that a flashback is a flashback when the characters/environment change rather than just jumping into a past memory with no orientation).

This simply doesn't happen in the book, it's chronologically 100% straightforward. You really should re read it, one is never in the right mode for reading when forced to in school. Super captivating book, intense, a page turner with a wild power to the protagonist. Movie is good but not close.
 

donny2112

Member
This simply doesn't happen in the book, it's chronologically 100% straightforward. You really should re read it, one is never in the right mode for reading when forced to in school. Super captivating book, intense, a page turner with a wild power to the protagonist. Movie is good but not close.

Hmmm. May just put it back on the list, then. Like giving classics a good chance, and watching the movie usually makes the book a lot more understandable.
 
Movies
  1. High Anxiety (1977) - Mel Brooks | ★★★
  2. Big Hero 6 (2014) - Don Hall, Chris Williams | ★★★★
  3. Horns (2014) - Alexandre Aja | ★★
  4. Birdman (2014) - Alejandro González Iñárritu | ★★★★
  5. Blade Runner: The Final Cut (1982) - Ridley Scott | ★★★★★
  6. The People vs. George Lucas (2001) Alexandre O. Philippe | ★★ ½
  7. Nightcrawler (2014) - Dan Gilroy | ★★★★★
  8. Cinderella (2015) - Kenneth Branagh | ★★★
  9. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (2007) - Julian Schnabel | ★★★★ ½
  10. John Wick (2014) - Chad Stahelski, David Leitch | ★★★★
  11. Boyhood (2014) - Richard Linklater | ★★★★½
  12. The Way He Looks (2014) - Daniel Ribiero | ★★★½
  13. Mommy (2014) - Xavier Dolan | ★★★★★
  14. Shadow of the Vampire (2000) - E. Elias Merhige | ★★★½

I've watched a lot of Movies in March, including many from last year that I missed. Now I feel bad that I am so behind on reading books since I've been busy with school work, tv shows, and movies.
 
allegate - 20/50 Books, 22/50 Movies

Movies
18. Big Fish, Mar 20th, 4/5
19. Bedtime Stories, Mar 21st, 2.5/5
20. John Wick, Mar 24th, 4.5/5

Updated original post.

And just to continue the "my dad died so I'm just going to sit in a corner and sob quietly to myself" movies, I watched Big Fish. Yeah I've watched it before but I'm including it here because it was the last movie I watched with my dad. So all that meant that by the end I was just a blubbering mess.

Editing because I don't want to have too many updates on the same page.

Today I finally watched John Wick. Amazing movie. It's almost disappointing there's going to be a John Wick 2.

Another edit:

Books
19. Fade to Black - Francis Black, Mar 20th, 3.5/5
20. Before the Fall - Francis Black, Mar 26th, 3/5
21.

Movies
21. Boyhood, Mar 28th, 4.5/5
22.


Updated original post.

Trying to read the series as fast as I can. It's not the greatest but it's easy reading while I'm slogging through another book that is roughly 900 pages.

I heard a lot of people talk about Boyhood when it was released, and the overwhelming opinion that I heard was "I don't know why I like/hate this movie", depending on who was talking. I was in the "like" camp, and I'm not sure why. It was really cool hearing them talk about things that you know were current, not just written to sound cool like most scripts. Meaning when they were talking about Kerry, it's because it was 2004 and Kerry was running for president and not because it's 2014 and they want to write a movie about 2004. The Star Wars talk was funny for the same reason.

edit: forgot to add The Boxtrolls, completely forgot I watched it. It was as good as past Laika productions but not as good as ParaNorman. Def. not better than The Lego Movie, stupid Academy.
 

Glaurungr

Member
Glaurungr - 39/50 books | 78/50 movies​
New update:

Books:

  • David Walliams - Gangsta Granny (2011)
  • Ernest Cline - Ready Player One (2011)
  • Jon Bing and Tor Åge Bringsværd - London 2084 (2014)
  • Ken Follett - Fall of Giants (2000)
  • Leif Wærenskjold - Labben og meg og Nullen (1931)
  • Peter Tremayne - Shroud for the Archbishop (1995)
  • Per Petterson - Ut å stjæle hester (Out Stealing Horses) (2003)
  • Yevgeny Zamyatin - We (1921)
  • Øyvind Johnsen - Soldathjerter: Slaget om Narvik - Nordfronten (2012)

  • Cornelius Jakhelln - Umgangskrigen (2013)
  • Erlend Loe - Kurt blir grusom (1995)
  • Eva Jensen - Mens lyset endrar flatene (2008)
  • Geir Halnes - Hils hvis du ser meg (2007)
  • Kari Bøge - I trylleskogen (1986)
  • Kari Grossmann - Trollungen Romle vil ikke legge seg (1992)
  • Martin Widmark and Mats Vänehem (ill.) - Høvdingens beger (2011)
  • Robert Jordan - Crossroads of Twilight (2003)

Movies:

  • Apocalypse Now - Francis Coppola (1979)
  • Attack the Block - Joe Cornish (2011)
  • Birdman - Alejandro G. Iñárritu (2014)
  • Exodus: Gods and Kings - Ridley Scott (2014)
  • Gattaca - Andrew Niccol (1997)
  • Gremlins - Joe Dante (1984)
  • Interstellar - Christopher Nolan (2014)
  • Ladyhawke - Richard Donner (1985)
  • Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa - Eric Darnell and Tom McGrath (2008)
  • Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted Eric Darnell and Tom McGrath (2012)
  • Majo no takkyûbin (Kiki's Delivery Service) - Hayao Miyazaki (1989)
  • Penguins of Madagascar - Eric Darnell and Simon J. Smith (2014)
  • Real Steel - Shawn Levy (2011)
  • The Curious Case of Benjamin Button - David Fincher (2008)
  • The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies - Peter Jackson (2014)
  • The Imitation Game - Morten Tyldum (2014)
  • The Librarian: Quest for the Spear - Peter Winther (2004)
  • The Theory of Everything - James Marsh (2014)
  • The Truman Show - Peter Weir (1998)
  • The Water Diviner - Russell Crowe (2014)
  • Top Gun - Tony Scott (1986)
 
Here's my March update. Kind of a slow month overall since I haven't been feeling up to reading or watching much of anything. I did go see the 10% shorts program along with Xenia and The Way He Looks at the Cleveland Film Festival though. I'll definitely try to attend that next year. Stats for TV shows, music, and other things can be seen in my OP.

Threads - 11/50 Books l 51/50 Films

Books:
10. Whipping Girl: A Transsexual Woman on Sexism and the Scapegoating of Femininity - Julia Serano - ★★★★★
11. Drive - James Sallis - ★★½

Films:
42. Bait (2012) - Kimble Rendall - ★½
43. 11:14 (2003) - Greg Marcks - ★★★★
44. Life Partners (2014) - Susanna Fogel - ★★★
45. Starred Up (2013) - David Mackenzie - ★★★½
46. Dancer in the Dark (2000) - Lars Von Trier - ★★★★½
47. Nightcrawler (2014) - Dan Gilroy - ★★★★
48. Birdman (2014) - Alejandro González Iñárritu - ★★★★
49. V/H/S: Viral (2014) - Justin Benson, Gregg Bishop, Todd Lincoln, Aaron Moorhead, Marcel Sarmiento, Nacho Vigalondo - ½
50. Xenia (2014) - Panos H. Koutras - ★★★★
51. The Way He Looks (2014) - Daniel Ribeiro - ★★★★½

Favorite book of March: Whipping Girl: A Transsexual Woman on Sexism and the Scapegoating of Femininity
Favorite film of March: The Way He Looks
 

rickyson1

Member
end of March update:

rickyson1- 15/50 books | 8/50 movies

Books:

Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb
Royal Assassin by Robin Hobb


Movies:

Charlie Wilson's War
12 Angry Men(1957)
Donnie Darko
Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me


slow month for me,fortunately I was well ahead in books and still am a little

did watch both seasons of Twin Peaks too so there's that
 
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