Tsotsi - Rented this African redemption story and like it, overall, but felt that it was overrated. We were also unsatisfied with the ending. It was really short, and we are fans of 90-minute movies if there is no reason for it to be longer. Why drag things on if you don’t need the time to give the movie its punch? And it's entertaining. Movie Grade: B
Two Lovers - Tell us, why were these women after this guy? He needs to get over his own depression before he takes any lovers at all. This one was forgettable, but well-acted. Movie Grade: C+
Source Code - Good and twisty. Leeard liked this one more than Ern did. It depressed Ern. She cared about the characters and didn't feel satisfied with how everything turned out. Movie Grade: B+
13 Reasons Why - In this young adult novel, a young girl commits suicide and sends tapes to the people who had a hand in the events that drove her to her death, explaining why she died. The first half leaves you thinking, “Why did she kill herself? Yeah, she had no real friends, but that’s not that bad.” If you make it through the first half, you get to the emotional, revelatory second half that comes through. By the time the mysteries unravel, you will be invested enough to care. We recommend the audiobook for this one, but the regular book is fine. We liked the protagonist too. We recommend this book to teens and others who want a reminder that they don’t know what’s going on in the heads of others and should reach out to the people they don’t normally talk to. Book Grade: A-
Ghost Story by Jim Butcher - If you haven’t read The Dresden Files, this isn’t the book to start with. If you’ve seen the TV series, know that the books are a lot better. If you’ve only read the first couple of books, know that the series gets better and more fun as Butcher gets the writing and story-crafting practice. By book 13 (this book), Butcher knows what he’s doing and is at the top of the urban fantasy heap. The main character spends this book dead, but that doesn’t stop the story, action, or character development, and we think that’s quite a feat. This is a sad, introspective one with an ending we liked. We liked that the main character questioned his very harmful decisions and we can’t wait for the next book that will probably come out in a year or so. It's impressive that a book series has gone on this long and still retains the quality of its best entries. Book Grade: B+
Love and Other Drugs - Leeard said this movie was “meh.” After arguing and trying to think differently, Ern has to agree. This is a mature, realistic love story that follows the chick-flick formula and juggles too many subplots that we don’t care about. The thing is, people who would go see this movie are chick flick lovers. They are looking for cute, funny, and opportunities to swoon. You won’t find that there. Movie Grade: C
Breaking Bad tomorrow!
On Ghost Stories: Still working my way through Side Jobs, but it's on the top of my list. Glad to hear it didn't disappoint.
ReplyDeleteIt's a little less action-y than the last one, but we like that. Our expectations were low because, like we said, what can you do with a main character who is a ghost and can't use his skills? Apparently, more than we thought. This book sort of had to happen in the series and we liked where it took things. So yeah. Not disappointed.
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