{Movie} Review: Triangle (2009)

Triangle (2009)
Starring:  Melissa George

When Jess sets sail on a yacht with a group of friends, she cannot shake the feeling that there is something wrong. Her suspicions are realized when the yacht hits a storm and the group is forced to board a passing ocean liner to get to safety, a ship Jess is convinced she's been on before. The ship appears deserted, the clock on board has stopped, but they are not alone... Someone is intent on hunting them down, one by one. And Jess unknowingly holds the key to end the terror.

My thoughts:
I loved this movie.  All the twists and turns keep you guessing until almost the final seconds.  It makes you realize that you do not need big budget special effects to make a great movie, you just need a good story.  I have added this one to my favorites of all time.

It is difficult to talk about this movie because I don't want to give anything away.  I was even hesitant to add the whole blurb above.  What makes it a great movie is that you are kept guessing, so don't watch any of the trailers.  I was unable to find a trailer to add to this post as they all give too much away.  So stay away!

The only advise I can give, is to listen to the dialogue and take notice of the details in all the scenes. Something in the background of one scene might become significant later in the story.   There is a lot of gore in this movie but it is part of the atmosphere and terror that Jess feels, so do not let that keep you away.

Please let me know what you thought after watching this one.  You will not be disappointed.

{Movie}Review: The Tall Man

The Tall Man (2012)
Starring:  Jessica Biel, Jodelle Ferland, William B Davis

This film is about a legend that has been started by the town folk of Cold Rock. Since the children in the town have been going missing, people have said it's an entity known as 'The Tall Man' who has been taking them. Julia Denning ('Jessica Biel' ) is the local nurse whose husband died years earlier. She is soon personally involved as her child is taken. She tries to track down where the child is taken, but finds that there's more to what's happening than she knew. The towns-folk start to turn on her and the truth comes out. But there's still more to the story--who is 'The Tall Man'? And what is the truth behind the disappearances?

My thoughts:
This movie started out very slowly.  Everything was so bleak.  What a sad life the citizens of Cold Rock had fallen into.  Since the mine closed down, life has been pretty bad for everyone in town. Stores are closing down or abandoned.  Everything (and everyone) is run down, dirty or broken. Money is tight or non-existent.
Julia, a trained nurse, has stayed on even after her husband, the beloved town doctor, has gone. She is trying to keep the town going. But children are going missing. More and more rumors are circulating about "the tall man", the one everyone believes are stealing the children.
One of the best aspects of this movie is that it will take you completely by surprise with it’s plot twists.  So no spoilers from me!  This is a movie that you have to go in blind.  And when all is revealed at the end, you will want to start a debate with your friends about the ethics of it all.
  

{Audiobook} Review: Gone Girl

 

Gone Girl
by Gillian Flynn

Genre: Physiological Thriller, Mystery
Date Read: 18 March 2014
Reading with my ears
Narrator: Julia Whelan and
Kirby Heyborne
Unabridged audio - Length:
19 hours 17 minutes

On a warm summer morning in North Carthage, Missouri, it is Nick and Amy Dunne's fifth wedding anniversary. Presents are being wrapped and reservations are being made when Nick's clever and beautiful wife disappears from their rented McMansion on the Mississippi River. Husband-of-the-Year Nick isn't doing himself any favors with cringe-worthy daydreams about the slope and shape of his wife's head, but passages from Amy's diary reveal the alpha-girl perfectionist could have put anyone dangerously on edge. Under mounting pressure from the police and the media--as well as Amy's fiercely doting parents--the town golden boy parades an endless series of lies, deceits, and inappropriate behavior. Nick is oddly evasive, and he's definitely bitter--but is he really a killer? As the cops close in, every couple in town is soon wondering how well they know the one that they love. With his twin sister, Margo, at his side, Nick stands by his innocence. Trouble is, if Nick didn't do it, where is that beautiful wife? And what was in that silvery gift box hidden in the back of her bedroom closet?

My thoughts: 
I am having a really hard time trying to review this book without giving away any spoilers.  I have written this review and deleted it and written it again . . .   I just want you to be so blown away as I was, so I am not going to give you any of the facts of the story.  Let’s just concentrate on my feelings about the book.  I will try to keep it as spoiler-free as I possibly can.

I picked up this book on a recommendation of my audiobook group on Goodreads.  I have found some gems that I would usually not even have considered and I am loving that my reading horizon are being expanded into genres that I would not usually look at.  I love book clubs!  
When I pressed play, I had no idea about the book except for the blurb and then I only scanned that before I got a copy.  After the first few chapters I was bored and I really hated Nick.   In fact, I was thinking that I did not understand what all the hype was about.  Nick has obviously murdered his wife – what was the big mystery?  This was just going to be a “how-he-did-it” with occasional comments from his wife via her found diary.  Oh my goodness, was I wrong!  I am so glad that I kept going.

This book turned into a psychological thriller like I have not read before (and that I hope I will find more of).  It was awesome!  So many twists and turns!  The ending was a bit of a disappointment as I was hoping everyone would get their due, but this is still one of my favourite reads so far this year.

{Movie} Review: Absence (2013)

Absence (2013)Starring:  Erin Way, Eric Matheny, Ryan Smale

Expectant mother Liz wakes to find her nearly-to-term pregnancy has disappeared overnight. When doctors can find no medical explanation for the loss, police treat Liz and her husband Rick as prime suspects in what has now become a missing child case. Only Rick and Liz's brother Evan trust her version of events. As word spreads, the young couple is subjected to the unwanted attention of the police and prying neighbors. Evan feels for his sister and, as a film student, begins documenting her story. Even though he can't prove Liz's innocence, he sets out to tell her side of what happened and to set the record straight. To relieve some of Liz's grief, Rick and Evan take her on a vacation to the mountains. Evan meets a local girl named Megan and the two hit it off. Things begin to settle down and Liz's spirits even start to improve. But as Evan continues documenting their vacation, unusual patterns arise. Liz still has no real answers for the disappearance of her baby despite his interviews and questions. Evan and Rick are horrified when her condition visibly declines. No one can ignore the fact that something is very wrong with Liz. When the trip spins out of control they realize that whatever happened with Liz and her baby isn't over. None of them are safe.

My thoughts:
The movie starts with some scary “facts”.  If this is not just for cinematic effect, it must be the most scary and invading kind of crime.  Our story starts with a cesarean theft.  Liz is seven months pregnant and she is the victim of a violent infant kidnapping (also known as Fetal abduction).  I have heard of some cases where a “baby” has been stolen out of their mother’s body but I have not heard of the mother surviving.  That in itself is a terrible image. 

The whole movie is part of the sub genre of “found footage” movies that was such a hit for a while (and that I am a huge fan of!).  I do not want to say more about the plot because it will be impossible not to give spoilers, so just read the blurb above. 
I thought the love between Liz and her brother Evan was beautiful.  Liz has raised Evan even since their parents died when he was twelve and I could feel Evan’s anguish trying to make Liz smile and forget about the last few weeks (if that is possible).  For a while, Erin became more than a shadow of her former self and she was such a sympathetic character – loved her.  

This movie was all about the relationships.  The love between Liz and her husband was gentle and convincing and as I already mentioned, Liz and Evan really connected on screen.   The action comes in little bursts but this movie is all about dialogue.  
I LOVED it and would recommend it highly for a little distraction.


Edited 04/05/2014 - Available on Netflix

{Audiobook} Review: The Shining

  The Shining
    by Stephen King
 
  Genre: Physiological Thriller, Horror
  Date Read: 22 March 2014
  Reading with my ears
  Narrator: Campbell Scott
  Unabridged audio - Length:
  15 hours 54 minutes

Danny was only five years old but in the     words of old Mr Halloran he was a 'shiner',   aglow with psychic voltage. When his father became caretaker of the Overlook Hotel his visions grew frighteningly out of control.
As winter closed in and blizzards cut them off, the hotel seemed to develop a life of its own. It was meant to be empty, but who was the lady in Room 217, and who were the masked guests going up and down in the elevator? And why did the hedges shaped like animals seem so alive?
Somewhere, somehow there was an evil force in the hotel - and that too had begun to shine...

My thoughts:
I read THE SHINING a lifetime ago and I still remember how scared I was – I even had to put the book aside for a bit between some of the scenes.  This was the first book that scared me enough to stop me reading.  I loved it! 

I watched the (original) movie a week or two ago and decided to re-read (listen to) the book again.  I must admit that it lost some of the scary-ness for me.   This time round it felt more like a physiological thriller.  It was about a man slowly losing his grip on reality and sinking into madness and not so much about a haunted hotel.  I could see that Jack Torrence wanted to blame everyone around him for his own failures and short comings.  Unfortunately only his wife and son was around and they made excellent scapegoats.  

I have also lost some of my sympathy for Danny (I did not enjoy DR SLEEP as much as the rest of the world).  I realize that he was just a little boy but I was unable to think of him as such.  He seemed to be much more mature than a five year old child.

The narrator of the book, Campbell Scott did not seem like a good fit when I started.  He talked too slowly and in such a dull tone.  But as soon as the real story begun, he was perfect.  That tone just made all the bleakness and emptiness of the snowed in hotel more real.  He quite literally scared me with Jack’s screams a few times.  He was an excellent fit for the story.

All in all, this was still an enjoyable read and I would definitely recommend it.