Sunday 31 January 2016

Ride Along 2: In cinemas!



With the sequel to the first Ride Along in cinemas last week, people are queuing up to buy tickets. From the trailer and its predecessor it seems like the perfect sequel to come out in cinemas for a long time. Check out the trailer, trust me you'll enjoy it...


Before I talk about the ratings let me tell you a bit about the story line. The two soon-to-be-brothers-in-law, Ben Barber (played by Kevin Hart) and James Payton (played by Ice Cube) are in Miami attempting to bust a drug ring. Let me just remind you that this a few days before Ben's wedding to Angela Payton, James' sister. In Miami, with the help of computer hacker A.J. (played by Ken Jeong) and homicide detective Maya Cruz (played by Olivia Munn) they find out that a well respected businessman Antonio Pope (played by Benjamin Bratt) is in fact the leader of the ring in South Florida. This leads them into many comical situations.

But then again, this duo is funny in any situation...



But from the reviews I've been seeing, it seems to me like there is no point in buying a cinema ticket just to watch it. AND what more is that even the ratings are really low, worse than the first one, much worse in fact. 

Ratings:

IMDb: 5.8/10
RottenTomatoes: 12%
Metacritic: 32%

Tell me in the comments section or vote on the poll if you think it is worth watching despite the negative reviews.

Deadpool Release on 12 Feb!

The date for the release of Deadpool is set for 12 February so we have less than two weeks to go! I can't wait since I've been looking forward to this since last year. Check out how amazing it is through the trailer below...


See what I mean? Ryan Reynolds portrays Deadpool perfectly as the fun and deadly superhero. We hadn't heard of him since 'X-men Origins: Wolverine' where he plays the mercenary Wade Wilson as part of the government's mutants fighting squad. The film ended with Ryan Reynolds being turned into his alter ego Deadpool after going through multiple operations to make him the perfect mutant. In the last scene, it can be seen that Deadpool is still alive despite Wolverine cutting off his head.

The poster for the release of Deadpool

The story line is supposedly that Wade Wilson has multiple organ failures and is forced to go through surgery (unfortunately it doesn't quite follow the 'Wolverine' story) on nearly all of his major organs. Throughout this experimental ordeal he has the support of his girlfriend Vanessa aka Copycat, played by Morena Baccarin, who stays by his side through the procedure that gives him his powers.

Ryan and Morena (from the official website)

After the procedure, Deadpool hunts down the person responsible for ruining his life. Throughout the film he is often assisted by his best friend Weasel, played by T J Miller. Despite his dark humor Deadpool is a character with a very dark and sad past, it almost makes us hope he didn't go through it. But without that, how would we have the Deadpool that we all love so much?

(http://www.foxmovies.com/movies/deadpool)

Be sure to comment your thoughts below... 





  

DeLorean: Going back to the past!

The DeLorean may have only been in production for a short span of two years but those were so influential that they have decided to go back to them. Thanks to the change in US law the 1980s car will be placed back in production in 2017, with the gull-winged doors!


The car was immortalised by the movie franchise 'Back to the Future' in 1985 and is beginning to come back in a factory in Texas by the new DeLorean Motor Company. the new company does not have many links to the original one run by John DeLorean.

The design itself will be the exact same with improvements to the numerous parts (there are about 3,000 parts to be used) to make the new car more efficient and powerful. According to the company, there are currently only plans to make 300 of these cars and each will be about £65,000. Much to the  joy of hardcore 'Back to the Future' fans, the cars will be made from the parts that were used on the original DeLoreans when they went out of commission in 1983. 

With new and modernised parts and a stronger engine, with a larger amount of horsepower, fans can only dream of what the car will look like. The production has not yet started but the planning stages are well underway as the initiative has been trying to get through since 2008. 

We can only hope that the new cars have a fitted time machine and can also travel to the future! 




Be sure to comment on your thoughts!

Supernatural Season 11 episode 10: The Devil in the Details

Let me just start off by saying how much I love Supernatural! It's one of my top ten TV shows that must be watched till they're finished. Rewinding back a few months to 7th October last year, season 11 was finally released! Check out the trailer if you haven't watched it...


After Sam gets rid of Dean's mark, the Darkness is released. Also known as Amara, the Darkness is found out to be God's sister (even I have to admit that plot twist was not within my range of stuff to expect from the show). Played by Emily Swallow, the character is perfect for being a cold being who somehow manages to get our sympathies for being locked away by her own brother. As it turns out she grows by devouring souls whole and doesn't even die after being struck by the holy power of the angels. She's out for vengeance while also having a strange attraction to Dean, the other bearer of the Mark of Cane. 



As everyone was saying before the release, Lucifer is indeed back. Sam goes to hell in episode 9 with the help of Crowley and his mother. But another plot twist...when Dean and Castiel get down there to help him out, Lucifer jumps into Castiel's body without them noticing. Now in episode 11 he's out and at full power (or at least close to it since he can't be stopped). Of course that is so unlike Misha Collins' lighthearted and lovable Castiel nature.


So we have God's sister and the Devil running loose on Earth too. Just makes you wonder when is God himself making an appearance? Be sure to comment and tell me your thoughts.

Ratings:

IMDb: 8.6/10
TV.com: 9.7/10
RottenTomatoes: 91%

...and a definite TV show to watch normally or even binge watch...


David Bowie: Loss of the world of music

A few weeks ago, the world of music lost one of its most famous idols: David Bowie. David Bowie died at the age of 69 from cancer. Just four days later, another famous actor Alan Rickman, Serverus Snape from Harry Potter, died for the same reason, pancreatic cancer. Coincidence?



David Bowie was a figure in popular music for over five decades and was considered as an innovator by many critics and other musicians, particularly for his work in the 1970s. As well as being a singer song write, he was also

David Bowie was actually born David Robert Jones, on 8th January 1947 in Brixton, South London, England. Despite receiving a serious injury, in a fight over a girl, from his friend George Underwood, Bowie was left with faulty depth perception and a permanently dilated pupil which gave a false impression of a change in iris colour. Despite their altercation, Underwood and Bowie remained good friends, and Underwood went on to create the artwork for Bowie's early albums.

Bowie formed his first band at the age of 15, playing guitar-based rock and roll and it was known as the Konrads. Bowie left the Konrads to join another band, known as the King Bees, where Bowie managed to release his first debut single ‘Liza Jane’.

Dissatisfied with his stage name ‘Davy Jones’, Bowie renamed himself after the 19th century American frontiersman Jim Bowie. After the changing of his name, Bowie moved on to work with more musicians such as Bill Fury, and he undertook small tours with Marc Bolan’s duo Tyrannosaurus Rex.

On 11th July 1969, 5 days ahead of the Apollo 11 launch, “Space oddity” was released. This was Bowie’s first successful single and reached the top 5 in the UK. Check it out...



From here, Bowie went onto undertake more tours, launching his Ziggy Stardust stage show with the Spiders of Mars in 1972. “Aladdin Sane”, released in 1973, topped the UK chart and became Bowie’s first number one album.

One of his last songs was Lazarus, released in 2016 from the album 'Blackstar'. It was a vividly moving experience just days after his death. Check it out and be sure to comment on which of Bowie's songs was your favorite.


Saturday 30 January 2016

Lucifer episode 2

After the leak of Lucifer's first episode last year, its rating and reviews have only gone up. Now we only have two more days to wait for the second episode to be release, by a more legal method this time!


Well, there is a bit of discontent among certain religious organisations, namely American Family Association's One Million Moms. They feel that the show is a false representation for what is taught by the bible. They have been trying to get the show to be withdrawn from commercial use.

In my opinion, and this is just from the leaked episode, 'Lucifer' is just a TV show there is no need to get so upset about it. However, everyone is entitled to their opinion and I respect their decision if they feel it is against their beliefs. 

Personally I hope it continues, it looks very good and I'd love to know what happens to the thrill seeking devil and his crime-fighting detective friend. Here's the trailer for the rest of the first season.


Played by Tom Ellis, the show depicts Lucifer Morningstar who is bored of his life as the King of Hell and decides to visit Los Angeles for a bit of fun. He has the ability to compel people to tell their deep dark secrets and also can tempt them to say their secret desires. He forces his help onto Detective Chloe Decker, played by Lauren German, to help capture criminals while running his own nightclub: 'Lux'.

The show is filled with witty and funny remarks from the King of Hell himself...


In my opinion it has the makings of a brilliant TV show and can progress into something great just like Breaking Bad, where there was also two funny protagonists. However, I feel that if the producers turn the relationship between Lucifer and Chloe into something romantic, the show itself may lose the playful element which many fans are enjoying. It may end up becoming something more serious which I feel would ruin it. Be sure to tell me what you think in the comments section below!

Ratings:

IMDb: 8.7/10
TV.com: 8.4/10
RottenTomatoes: 49%

Black Sails Season 3 release!

Finally! After about 10 months of waiting, the first episode of the best pirate TV show was finally released on January 23 2015. Now we have episode 2 released today!


Here's the trailer of Season 3 if you accidentally missed it...


The show is so good that they've already decided to make a season 4 before season 3 is even out! In the new season we will be meeting a new Captain Flint, hell-bent on revenge. After the death of his love, it's obvious that he blames England. So he's out for vengeance, so much so that he's willing to go through death itself to get it. Even our fun and composed Long John Silver has changed drastically after his near death experience and his leg being taken off.


Get ready to meet probably the most well known pirate on the seven seas, Edward Teach or as he is better known: Blackbeard! The famous pirate is played by Ray Stevenson. Aye! The same actor that is in Divergent, Thor and Transporter:Refueled! 


A lot has changed from the past two seasons so to catch up just watch Starz's recap of the last season if you forgot...



This series is a must watch for all action and pirate lovers. Even if you don't love these genres, after you watch this TV show, you're sure to fall in love. Tell me how you feel if you end up watching it by commenting below or sending me a message on my google+ .

Ratings:

IMDb: 8.1/10
TV.com: 8.4/10
Metacritic: 58%




The Secret River by Kate Grenville


"Ain't nothing in this world for the taking.
Matter of give a little, take a little."
Thomas Blackwood

I recently just read The Secret River by Kate Grenville. Published in 2008, it is one of three books about the early colonisation of Australia by the British empire. It was shortlisted for The Man Booker Prize 2006 and is winner of the 2006 Commonwealth Writers Prize. It is broken into parts not chapters so each part is the same as a really big chapter with some being larger than other.

The original cover from the publisher
The book itself focuses on the main character William Thornhill, as he grows from a poor child in the streets of London into a grown and rich main on the river bank of Sydney. In his childhood he is one of many siblings and the reader really sympathises with his poor living conditions. Grenville allows William to have a ray of sunlight in the form of Sal Middleton, a childhood sweetheart.  I felt really happy for William, when in Part 1 "London", he finally begins to make something with his life as he is given an apprenticeship by Mr Middleton who is a water-man on the river Thames. William ends up marrying Sal and their relationship turns out amazing. It is just so saddening that after the dead of Sal parents, William is forced to turn back to his life of thievery. I knew i should've expected this but it still hit me quite hard when he got caught stealing some wood from his employer. Of course as it's a story William couldn't be hung here, and he is sentenced to exile to Australia.

Part 2 to Part 6 are all about William's life on Australia, or more precisely Sydney. Never having an inkling of what it means to own something of his own it is easy to see why he is so obsessed with staying there and not returning to London. In Part 3, after taking a loan from one of his employers, he takes a plot of land, previously owned by the natives, and makes it his own. There he uproots their crops and starts to plant his own crops simply thinking them as the work of "moles". The natives of course are not happy, however, William refuses to leave the plot of land he has become obsessed with. By this time he has children on his own and I understand why he is unwilling to leave, although I feel that he was being very ignorant comparing the natives to "ants". There are two types of white settlers: Smasher Sullivan, the type who wishes to kill all natives and Thomas Blackwood, who finds it easier to simply get along with them. Thomas Blackwood has a secret as is discovered by William later in the book about how close he really is to the natives.

His second oldest son Richard, Dick for short, is the son who interacts mostly with the natives. It can be seen that he just wants friends. Sal, similarly, just wants people around her as she is set on returning to London one day, finding Sydney as small stop in their journey. Eventually Sal gives up on ever returning to London as she understands that, since only one of their children was born in London, their home is in Sydney. These feelings begin to tear the family apart. When William is assigned two servants, also convicts, to his household, the beginning of him becoming corrupt can be seen. He swore to never be like the "gentry" who forced him into a poor lifestyle but he ends up becoming one of them and abusing his power over the two servants.

Things really go downhill from Part 5 and Part 6. Here the natives are found to be gathering in numbers, although the reason is unknown, and are thought to be preparing for war. The governor of Sydney issues that all white settlers are allowed to remove the natives form their properties by any means necessary. Eventually, the natives are poisoned by one of the white settlers with rat poison, with the remainder being killed in a massacre. It is implicitly stated that William only kills one native, but in my opinion that doesn't change the things he did.

In the epilogue "Thornhill's Place", the Thornhill family has broken up. Dick no longer lives with his family and William and Sal's relationship is strained with secrets. William is a rich person who employs others to work for him and now owns nearly all the land around the river.     

In 2015, the book was made into a two-part miniseries by ABC with the first episode airing June 14th 2015 and the second episode airing June 21st 2015. It stars Oliver-Jackson Cohen as William Thornhill, Sarah Snook as Sal Thornhill and Lachy Hulme as Thomas Blackwood. Check out the trailer below:



Personally, I found the book kept me on my toes despite being slightly boring at times as it is not exactly the kind of book I read. Grenville certainly knows how to progress the relationships in the story very well as she keeps husband and wife close despite the many opportunities to destroy their relationship. In my opinion, Thornhill may not have been the best protagonist, however this book is perfect for showing the truth behind the atrocious acts that took place against the aboriginal people in Sydney. The book does include descriptions of some graphic scenes and may not be best for younger readers. I would give it a 9/10. Be sure to tell me what you think and any similar books through the comments section!