Kiss the Girls

I have seen Kiss the Girls several times since it first came out to rent.  I had it on VHS and I now have it on DVD.  I have also read the book by James Patterson that the movie is based on.  I really enjoy the movie and think it is worth watching.

Police detective and psychologist Alex Cross travels to Durham, North Carolina after he niece goes missing.  It turns out that several young women have vanished in the area and the local cops are basically clueless.  Soon after Alex arrives, Kate, a young doctor, is taken from her home by a man who calls himself Casanova.  Kate is able to escape and she ends up working with Alex to find the other women and stop Casanova. 

I did read the book before seeing the movie originally.  It has been a long time since I last read the book, but from what I remember, the movie stays fairly close to the book.  The book is actually the second to feature the character of Alex.  The first book, Along Came a Spider, has also been turned into a movie, but it was done after this one.  I have lost track of how many Alex Cross books there are.  I gave up reading them several years ago.

I do think that Kiss the Girls has a decent mystery.  There is some suspense to several scenes.  The subject, dealing with women being abducted and held against their will, is a bit upsetting.  The book goes into way more details about what is done to the women.  Some of the things are just hinted at in the movie.  Violence does turn up in some scenes, like when Kate is attacked and taken.  Some of what happens may be disturbing to some viewers. 

The characters in Kiss the Girls are interesting, though several of them aren’t that developed.  Alex is likable and Morgan Freeman does well with the part, though I did picture Alex younger when I read the book.  Kate is a very strong, determined woman and I did think that Ashley Judd did well with the part.  If I remember right, this was one of her first big parts.  Casanova is just seen in shadows and wearing a mask for much of the movie.  He is heard speaking, and he has a creepy voice.

The DVD that I have of Kiss the Girls doesn’t have any extras.  I don’t know if there is another version with extras.  I also don’t know if the movie has been released on Blu-ray.

Kiss the Girls has a few issues, but it works well overall as a decent suspense thriller.  Fans of Morgan Freeman should check it out.

I did get a review posted on Epinions.

Kiss the Girls

Indulgence in Death by J.D. Robb

I continue to pick up the new In Death books by J.D. Robb when they come out.  The series is now up to 31 books.  The series is set in the future in New York City and follows homicide detective Eve Dallas on her various investigations.  Things tied to her personal life, like her marriage to Roarke, also turn up.  I just finished Indulgence in Death, the newest book.

Eve and Roarke are celebrating their second anniversary with a trip to Ireland when the book begins.  Unfortunately, Eve can’t avoid death even on vacation since a dead body is found.  She doesn’t investigate, but she does offer some help since the local cops aren’t very experienced with murder investigations.  Once back home, Eve quickly gets a new murder case that is a bit odd.  The first murder is followed by others that are also at least somewhat bizarre. 

Indulgence in Death follows the murder investigations.  It doesn’t take Eve long to tied the murders together since there are similarities.  The mystery is interesting, though some of the previous books in the series have had stronger mysteries.  Some violence pops up every so often, but the book isn’t as violent as many of the previous books have been.  The plot is interesting and very entertaining.  People who have enjoyed the previous books in the series will more than likely enjoy this one as well.

Since this is the thirty first book in a series, the characters are very well developed by this point.  The main story does stand alone very well, but there are a few references back to events from earlier books.  One case in particular is mentioned several times, mostly because a book about it has just been released.  I do think it is best to read these books in order so that everything will make the most sense. 

J.D. Robb is Nora Roberts, so people who like books by Nora Roberts may also like the In Death series.  The mystery tends to be stronger in the In Death books and they are more violent at times. 
Indulgence in Death is another very entertaining book in the In Death series.  Fans of the series should definitely pick it up.

I did get a review posted on Epinions.

Indulgence in Death by J.D. Robb

Due Date

I really like Robert Downey Jr. and I’ve been seeing more of his movies in the last few years.  I wanted to see Due Date after the first time I saw the trailer.  While the movie isn’t going to appeal to everyone, it is really funny and entertaining.

Due Date gets rather crude and rude at times, and it definitely deserves the R rating.  That is going to turn a lot of viewers off.  This is not a family friendly movie by any stretch of the imagination, but it is really entertaining.

Peter is flying home from Atlanta after being in town for business.  His wife is very pregnant and the due date is just a few days away.  Peter first encounters Ethan outside the airport.  That brief meeting causes Peter some trouble.  Things only get once one the plane and the men end up thrown off and put on a no fly list.  Since his identification and money are left behind on the plane, Peter can’t rent a car and is stuck driving across the country with Ethan.  The men face several complications while Peter remains determined to get home before the baby is born.

There are definitely similarities to Planes, Trains, and Automobiles in Due Date.  I can also see a few similarities to National Lampoon’s Vacation.  I don’t mind the similarities because there are other things that are different and help to make the movie more unique.  The main plot isn’t the most original, but some unique situations pop up every so often.  I think the movie ends up being very funny and entertaining.  Other people may feel differently.

Several things that happen in Due Date are crude or twisted in some way.  Some of those things are funny in a twisted way.  I could see some viewers being turned off by things that happen during the movie.  This one definitely isn’t for everyone.  People that don’t mind crude humor should give the movie a chance.

The characters, while not as developed as they could have been, are really entertaining.  The way that Peter and Ethan interact is wonderful.  That dynamic drives the whole movie, and it if hadn’t worked, the movie wouldn’t have worked.  Robert Downy Jr. and Zack Galifianakis are wonderful in their parts.  They work really well together.

Due Date works as a funny, entertaining movie, though it isn’t for everyone.  Fans of the cast should give it a chance.

I did get a longer review posted on Epinions.

Due Date

Happy Ever After

Nora Roberts is one of my favorite authors and I pick up her new books as they are released.  I recently read Happy Ever After, the final book in her Bride Quartet series.

The Bride Quartet is about four friends who run a wedding planning business together.  Each book has been focused on a different one of the friends and a relationship they have started.  Every Nora Roberts book that I’ve read has had some romance in it, but most of them have also had a mystery of some kind.  The books in this series don’t.  They are straight romance, like the first books she wrote.  Since there isn’t any mystery, some people could be disappointed.

Parker serves as the wedding planner for the clients of Vows, juggling all sorts of things for the brides.  She is always taking calls from them, even in the middle of the night at times.  Work has been the main focus of her life for a long time.  She starts to go out with Malcolm, a mechanic who is also one of her older brother’s best friends.

Happy Ever After does build on what has happened in the previous three books.  Some things from those books are brought up again, so I do think people should read the books in order.  The plot is more simple and straightforward and that might bother some readers.  I didn’t bother me since the story is still entertaining.

Weddings come up a lot in Happy Ever After since the women have a wedding planning business.  A few different weddings take place during the book, and a few complications do pop up.  The complications are entertaining at times.  All kinds of details about running a wedding planning business come up and it is easy to see that Nora Roberts did a lot of research for the book.

The characters are interesting and likable overall.  Parker has been in the first three books, though not as much since other characters were the main characters in those books.  I really like the characters overall, though a few of them can be a little annoying every so often.

Happy Ever After is a very entertaining book and it makes a strong conclusion to the Bride Quartet series.  Fans of Nora Roberts should give this book, and the series, a chance.

I did get a review posted on Epinions.

Happy Ever After

Airplane!

I like spoof movies when they are done well.  Unfortunately, many of them aren’t that great.  Airplane! is probably the best spoof movie I’ve seen.

Ted Striker is a former pilot who is still trying to get over his experience in the war.  His girlfriend Elaine can’t handle his problems any more and tells him she is leaving him.  She is a flight attendant, and Ted over comes his fear of flying to get a seat on her flight.  She tries to ignore him, but once passengers and members of the crew get sick, Ted has to try to land the plane.

Airplane! is definitely spoofing disaster movies.  I did read that it was basically a remake of the movie Zero Hour!.  I’ve never seen that one, so I have no idea what has been changed for this movie.  The plot of Airplane! is fairly simple, though it makes for an entertaining movie.  The things that happen may be a bit silly or over the top, but they manage to work overall for the movie.  There is a decent reason for why Ted has to take over flying the plane.  There is a hint of believability to what is going on.

There really isn’t any mystery to the plot of Airplane! and most of what happens is predictable.  The plot could have been a little stronger, but it still makes for an entertaining movie.  Most of what happens is silly.  Those silly things add humor to the movie.  Some of the humor is a bit dated now, but the movie is still really funny.  The humor works much better than what is done in most of the newer spoof movies.

The characters aren’t developed a lot, though they still manage to be entertaining.  The cast does well with their parts.  This is one of the few movies that I’ve seen Robert Stack in. 

Airplane! is a bit silly, so it won’t appeal to some people.  The movie is really funny and I do think it is worth watching.

I did get a review posted on Epinions.

Airplane!

Time After Time

I first saw Time After Time on tv several years ago.  Since I remembered liking the movie, I decided to pick up the DVD when I found it on sale.

H.G. Wells has some friends over, including doctor John Stevenson.  He shows them his new invention, a time machine.  The police arrive because Jack the Ripper just killed someone in the area and they are checking all the houses.  Everyone is shocked when evidence is found that shows that John is the killer.  John disappears and H.G. figures out that John used the time machine.  H.G. was able to follow after him, and he ends up in San Francisco in 1979.  He meets Amy, a woman he develops feelings for and who ends up trying to help him deal with the situation with John.

From what I read about the movie after watching it recently, I learned that Time After Time is sort of based on a book and a short story.  The character of Amy was given the same name as H.G.’s second wife.  While it is clear that the story if fictional, it is interesting that a real person is one of the main characters.  The idea that H.G. would build a time machine and use it is intriguing.

There isn’t much mystery to what is going on in Time After Time since it comes out fairly early that John is Jack the Ripper.  H.G. does struggle to find John in the future and the police are stumped by the murders.  A few women are murdered during the movie, though not much is shown and the movie really isn’t that violent.  There are a few surprises and a little bit of suspense in a few scenes.

The characters don’t receive a lot of development in Time After Time, though I still think they are interesting.  This is one of the few parts I’ve seen Malcolm McDowell play that wasn’t at least somewhat twisted.  I didn’t recognize him at first.

Time After Time is very entertaining and I think it is still worth watching.  The effects are dated looking, though not that bad considering when the movie was made.  Some of what happens is a bit odd, but it makes for an entertaining movie.

I did get a review posted on Epinions.

Time After Time

Red

I have liked Bruce Willis for years, so I do tend to check out his new movies.  I first got interested in seeing Red a few months ago when I saw the trailer.

Frank Moses is a retired CIA agent who seems to be having a little trouble fitting in with a normal life.  He only decorates for Christmas once he realizes that all his neighbors have decorations out.  Sarah Ross works for the company that handles his pension and he keeps finding excuses to call her.  Late one night Frank wakes up and discovers that a hit squad is there to kill him.  After handling the men, Frank goes to see Sarah, convinced that she is in danger because of his contact with her.  He basically kidnaps her, though she ends up helping him.  Frank also gets in contact with Joe and Marvin, men he’s worked with before.  They come up with a plan that involves former MI6 agent Victoria. 

Red is based on a short series of comic books.  I haven’t read them, so I don’t know for sure how much has been changed. 

The plot of Red is interesting and it makes for an entertaining movie.  Things do start off a little slow while things are set up, but it really doesn’t take that long for more to start happening.  There are a lot of action scenes in the movie.  Those scenes do go a bit over board, but they are entertaining.  The pace is fairly fast, though things aren’t rushed.  Violence is in several scenes as well, though it isn’t as graphic as it could have been.  I do think there is a good amount of humor, mostly added by things characters say and do.  Marvin adds the most humor.  The man is clearly missing most of his marbles. 

I like the characters in Red and find them to be very entertaining and interesting.  None of them are that developed, but they are interesting.  The cast is wonderful, though Bruce Willis has played similar characters before.  Helen Mirren is wonderful as Victoria.  She does really well as a tough character who is really good at killing people. 

Red is a little over the top, but it is fun and entertaining.  Fans of the cast should give it a chance.

I did get a review posted at Epinions.

Red