Showing posts with label movie reviews. Show all posts
Showing posts with label movie reviews. Show all posts

May 23, 2013

Cindy N. Reviews the Transformers Movies--Part Three

Taking the 50-Word Review Challenge!

The Movie: Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)
The reviewer: Cindy N. 
Available from: Amazon

Went into this one with an attitude of “If I see BumbleBee at least once I will be happy.” Slow at first, not sure where it was going to go, nice real footage from actual news footage.  Overall better story than Revenge, which was basically a two hour fight scene between movies and I could have missed it without losing anything storyline-wise.  None of my questions from Revenge were answered.  No explanation for the absence of Mikaela; introduce a blonde and move on.  I see I have to wait a year for Transformers 4. 
 
Readers, Please Comment: Did you enjoy this review? Dislike it? Agree? Disagree? Please share what you think!

More reviews are coming soon! Please note: this concludes our Spring 2013 50-Word Review Challenge.  The winners of our "Most Reviews Submitted" and "Most Popular Review" categories will be announced at ConQuesT 44, and also at the June KaCSFFS Meeting on June 15, 2013.

The KaCSFFS Board and membership are considering whether to issue another Challenge for the summer.  If you would like to comment on this decision, please use the comment section below.  We would love to know if our readers have enjoyed reading all the reviews.

We actually received more reviews than we could publish during the announced contest period, so we will continue publishing them until we run out. Please don't let us run out of reviews!
 
COVER IMAGE: Courtesy of IMDB.

May 22, 2013

Cindy N. Reviews the Transformers Movies--Part Two

Taking the 50-Word Review Challenge!
The Movie: Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009) 
The reviewer: Cindy N. 
Available from: Amazon 

WT? The questions I was left with are endless. While the story made me think, so that is why there are pyramids.  How did the Decepticons create a flesh covered bot?  Where were the scenes of my favorite car BumbleBee?  Really send him off to protect the parents during the fight scene?  Having since seen Transformers 3, I totally believe Revenge of the Fallen was made to use up scenes left on the cutting room floor from the original movie. I end this review as I started it with WT? 

Readers, Please Comment: Did you enjoy this review? Dislike it? Agree? Disagree? Please share what you think!

More reviews coming soon!
COVER IMAGE: Courtesy of IMDB.

May 21, 2013

Cindy N. Reviews The Transformers Movies--Part One

Taking the 50-Word Review Challenge!


The Movie: Transformers (2007)
The reviewer: Cindy N. Available from: Amazon


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A story was told which was complete but left open-ended for future stories.  There is a very personal side to this movie.  I promised a dear friend of 28 years that I would watch this movie 37 days before he passed away.  I fell in love with older version of BumbleBee in the used car lot and then cried through my first viewing.  My new nickname is queen of the silent tear.   Friends made me watch it again. I laughed and cried. I have watched it three times now; still cry, but another favorite movie to watch again. 
Readers, Please Comment: Did you enjoy this review? Dislike it? Agree? Disagree? Please share what you think!

More reviews coming soon!
COVER IMAGE: Courtesy of IMDB.

November 14, 2012

Annual Thanksgiving Feast-Meeting, plus a New Review!

New Review!
Check out David Sooby's review of the new James Bond movie, Skyfall, on our Reviews Page!

Are you ready to Feast?
OK all of you turkey-hungry KAXFEN, it is that time of year for the annual KaCSFFS Thanksgiving dinner.

We try to get all of the current and past members of our fannish family together to celebrate.

Late news update: "Cards Against Humanity" will be played during the social period at this meeting. if you like this game and have a deck, please bring it and come to play. If you don't know about this game but are curious, here's your chance to learn more if you're interested!

When: Nov 17 at 6:30 pm
Where: The Writers Place, 3607 Pennsylvania Ave., Kansas City, MO 64111

There will be two KaCSFFS turkeys. The rest is pot-luck.

Please let Diana Bailey know how many in your party will be coming, and what type of dish you will be bringing to share. Plastic tableware, napkins, plates, etc. are provided. Drinks are on your own.


KAXFEN stand in line for dinner at the 2010 meeting.
Here are categories of foods we need:
Salad: be creative! There's a wide range of possibilities.
Fruit or vegetable tray—but remember: KAXFEN DON'T EAT BROCCOLI. This is the voice of experience speaking.
Potato or rice dish--This includes sweet potatoes, in case you wondered.
Dressing
Gravy--No, it's not automatic with the turkey, this year!
Cranberry anything--from relish to fancy breads. Which brings us to:
Bread/rolls/ butter--a Thanksgiving staple
Desserts--traditional or innovative, KAXFEN never pass up dessert!

PHOTO CREDITS: Many thanks to the Inhabitant website for the cornucopia photo. We also recommend this site for news and insights on environmental issues, "green" design, and lots more. The photo of the food line in 2010 is courtesy of Ty Gephardt.

This post was updated Nov. 15, 2012.

August 07, 2012

August Laser Rangers 2012 Meeting

Doomsday, Knocking at Our Door

Date: August 11, 2012
Time: Around 4:45pm (fanish time)
Place: David Sooby’s home theater with 51-inch Samsung HDTV, a 5.1 Surround Sound Dolby Digital sound system, a full set of audiophile-grade speakers, and brand new seating for about 15 people without crowding.
Captain Laser: Bill O.Food Theme: Concession Stand/Drive-in
Dress theme: 1950's Garb

See more information at the Laser Rangers website!!  


A short feature will precede our first feature: 


The Magnetic Monster 

(1953, 76 minutes), starring Richard Carlson and King Donovan
IMDB Synopsis: Working for O.S.I., the Office of Scientific Investigation, A-Man agent Jeffrey Stewart and his partner Dan Forbes are sent to a local hardware store where they find a strong magnetic field has magnetized every metal item in the store. Investigating further, they eventually trace the source of the magnetism to an airborn [sic] flight carrying scientist Howard Denker, now dying of radiation poisoning, who has carted on board with him a new radioactive element which he has bombarded with alpha particles for 200 hours.
See the thrilling trailer on YouTube now! 




 

Following our potluck dinner (bring what you'd like to share) we'll be showing another short or two then our second, main feature.


The Satan Bug

(1965, 114 minutes) starring George Maharis, Richard Basehart, Anne Francis, and Ed Asner
IMDB Synopsis: A germ warfare lab has had an accident. The first theory is that one of the nasty germs has gotten free and killed several scientists. The big fear is that a more virulent strain, named The Satan Bug because all life can be killed off by it should it escape, may have been stolen.
What in amazement the trailer on YouTube now!







Reviews by Ken Keller of Kansas City.
The Magnetic Monster
First off, forget the title. If you go into director Curt Siodmak’s "The Magnetic Monster" looking for a monster movie, you’re going to be sorely disappointed. What we have instead is one of the most ernestly serious science fiction films of the 1950’s, and one of the very few that attempted to examine the newborn horrors of the Nuclear Age in a sober, non-sensational, but low budget manner. (Typical of producer Ivan Tors, who would use the same approach for his "Science Fiction Theater" syndicated TV series.)

The film opens with narrated exposition that science fiction film makers of the 1950’s loved so much: "One of the side-effects of this decade’s rapid expansion in the importance of cutting-edge science in all fields of human endeavor has been the emerging need for a federal investigative agency to deal with the unexpected consequences of these new sciences. Thus, the Office of Scientific Investigation was created to serve as a sort of scientific counterpart to the FBI." 

Dr. Jeffrey Stewart (Richard Carlson) is one of the OSI’s most talented investigative scientists. As the film opens, he and his partner, Dr. Dan Forbes (King Donovan), are sent out to look into a very strange occurrence: Every metallic object in a Los Angeles hardware store has been endowed with a very powerful magnetic charge. Stewart and Forbes determine that the source of the intense magnetic field is in one of the apartments above the store, and they go upstairs to investigate. When they do, they discover that a very odd magnetism emanates from the body of a dead man, killed apparently by some sort of unusual, unknown radiation. Stewart orders the store closed and the building evacuated, and then returns to OSI headquarters with the magnetized and radioactive body. From then on, their investigation grows only stranger, pushing the known boundaries of 1950's science, as they pursue something quite unexpected and extremely dangerous to all of humanity.
****


The Satan Bug
An Americanized adaptation of an early Alistair Maclean thriller, this 1965 film made quite an impression at the time. It was one of the first films to deal with the horrific threat of biological warfare, and it offered the underrated George Maharis as a U.S. agent who uses his mind as much (or more) as his muscles. Supported by a fine cast of solid actors, Maharis works his way through a tangled web of misdirection to discover who has stolen the ghastly Satan Bug -- and more to the point, why. The story is a little sluggish at times, but that still doesn't detract from the creepier portion of the story, which allows the viewer to contemplate the apocalyptic results of unleashing such a horrible weapon on the world of the 1960s, unprepared in every way for such a biological catastrophe.

It's a treat to see actors like Ed Asner & Frank Sutton before their huge TV sitcom successes -- Sutton is especially good as a leering thug. And of course there's the luminous presence of Anne Francis, whose rapport with Maharis was previously demonstrated in one of the classic episodes of the very popular TV series "Route 66" -- the actors genuinely liked each other, and it shows again in this film. It's just a shame her role is underwritten, and she never really gets a chance to show off what she could do with her character. But her mere prescience in the film makes it all the more worth watching.
This film has something of the quality of a made-for-TV 1960s movie--but a very good one! Modern audiences may find its pacing occasionally slow, as it's more of a police procedural than an all-out action film. But that's not necessarily a bad thing. Mentally adjust for the difference in the evolution of film making styles during the last 40+ years, and you will find yourself engrossed before you know it.

"The Satan Bug" is an entertaining film that leaves the viewer with something troubling to think about afterwards: There's no reason to believe that work on biological weapons hasn't advanced even further, in secret, in the decades since this film first appeared--and that's a chilling thought, indeed!

The DVD-R transfer isn't very good--more like an average VHS-to-DVD transfer. A real DVD, remastered & complete with extras, would be great to have...but for the time being, this is what's available. The film itself is certainly worth seeing as the first example of the modern techno-thriller genre.

Thank you Ken for your write ups! 
The home of the Laser Rangers is located about two miles north of the Kansas Speedway, NW of the intersection of I-70 and I-435 on the Kansas side of the Greater Kansas City area. For the exact address and directions, e-mail David Sooby at the email address given here.


IMAGE CREDITS: The information and movie poster images for all of these shows come from the invaluable IMDB or the movie's  respected distrubutors. The movie screen frame image used for the Laser Rangers contact information is courtesy of Psychology Today Online. Many thanks to these websites!

March 16, 2012

John Carter and St. Patrick--Plus Important Decisions

Introducing a new "Reviews and Commentary" Tab!
Check the tabs above this post, and notice there's a new one available. We've been wanting to start a page such as this, featuring comments about, and reviews of, works in our spectrum of genres for a while, now!

The page will feature opinions on books, artwork, theatrical productions, music . . . any art form that our readers care to write about. The page debuts with commentary and a brief review of the movie John Carter, written by KAXFEN Ken Keller and David Sooby.

Green Men of All Sizes--and Friends--Are Welcome and NEEDED at the March 17 Meeting!
Bring St. Pat's goodies to share!
Come early to The Writers Place, if you want to park within easy walking distance! We'll be competing with The Hoolie (featuring The Elders) at the Uptown Theater at the other end of the block that night.

We have many important pieces of business and several pleasant diversions in store.

You don't have to be green (it's never easy), but please do WEAR green! And bring green food, too! Check out the recipes on the "Lehigh Valley Live" website, if you need inspiration! 

Readings!
SF and F authors reading at the March 17, 2012 meeting, L-R: Bryan Thomas Schmidt, Sarah Frost, and Sherri Dean.
Jim Murray, A.K.A. Dr. Paisley, will
be on hand to read from vintage issues
of the KaCSFFS 'zine, Cacophony. 
Remember your delight as a little kid, when the wise adults in your home offered to tell or read a story? (If you have no such memories, we offer our sincere condolences for missing one of life's delights).

Recapture childhood glee with our program on Saturday!

KaCSFFS' own Bryan Schmidt, Sherri Dean, and Sarah Frost will read for about 15-20 minutes each, from one of their recent works of science fiction or fantasy.

Jim Murray also will read from one or more vintage issues of Cacophony, a fanzine/newsletter that he edited, and which was published by KaCSFFS for several years in the 1980s and 1990s.


Dues!
No one particularly likes to pay dues, but annual dues are DUE in March. When you pay your dues, either online via the sidebar to the right, or in person at the meeting Saturday, they do three very important things for KaCSFFS members:
(1) They make us members-in-good-standing, when they are paid on time.
(2) They thereby allow us to run for, and vote for, our Board of Directors.
(3) They also thereby make us eligible for member-discounts at ConQuesT 43, both locations of Prospero's Books, Aquarius Books, Vulcan's Forge, and The Marrakech Cafe, when we show our current membership card.

Memberships for New Members and Renewals
We will have a separate room upstairs where members can pay dues and receive laminated membership cards for the current KaCSFFS fiscal year. Members who already have paid, either online or at the February meeting, also may pick up their cards.

YOU MUST BE A CARD-CARRYING CURRENT KACSFFS MEMBER TO VOTE FOR OFFICERS IN APRIL. No "voter fraud" allowed--show your card for a ballot!

This meeting also will be the next-to-last chance to buy a ConQuesT 43 membership in person, and get the club discount (We will sell discounted memberships at the April meeting, too). Online club discounts will be available through April 30

Last Chance to Declare Your Self-Nomination for the KaCSFFS Board!
In KaCSFFS, no one can nominate you but yourself--and the last chance to do so for the 2012 Election is Satuday's meeting! This is because of an Absentee Ballot provision being introduced with the new Bylaws that are required for the 501(c)3 application.

Under the new Bylaws, the five elective offices on the KaCSFFS Board of Directors are President (under the old Bylaws, this office was called Director), Secretary, Treasurer, Communications Officer (formerly Editor), and ConQuesT Chairperson for the planning year (in this case, that means the ConQuesT 44 Chairperson. John Platt IV will serve out the final month his Chairpersonship of ConQuesT 43, without having to run for the office he has been filling all year).

And About Those Bylaws:
The Provisional Draft of the 2012 KaCSFFS Bylaws, which will bring the club into compliance with the Legal Code of the State of Missouri for its 501(c)3 application will be presented for commentary and voting. The version provisionally approved (or not) will be subject to further modification, pending a review of the Provisional Draft by the KaCSFFS membership.

We have a Bylaws Committee that has been working on this draft since last year. Any member in good standing who wishes to join this committee for the Final Drafting process should speak to Committee Chairperson Jan S. Gephardt Saturday, and all suggestions for revisions that come up in the discussion before voting on provisional approval will be noted and acted upon during the Final Drafting process.

A final version, titled Bylaws of the Kansas City Science Fiction and Fantasy Society, Inc., and dated 2012, will be the subject of a straight up-or-down vote by the members at the May meeting.

Other Notes:
Help Robin W. Bailey clean out
his bookshelves!
We will have "get well" cards available at the meeting to sign for Alex Boyd and Suzette Haden Elgin. Diana Bailey will have them upstairs at the membership table.

Robin W. Bailey will be clearing out bookshelf and garage space by setting up a book sales table near the refreshment area, and selling books from 5:15 until the business meeting starts at 6:30. 


He says, "come a little early, check out what I've got on the table, and maybe find a few bargains. I'll have a selection of my own books and anthologies, as well."  

PHOTO CREDITS: The St. Pat's Day party cupcake image came from Lehigh Valley Live. The recipe is there, too, along with several others that look fabulous. The photo of Bryan Thomas Schmidt came from the bio page on his website. The photo of Sarah Frost is from her Writertopia profile. The photo of Sherri Dean is her Profile Picture on Facebook. Jim Murray's photo came from his profile on GooglePlus. The "candidate" image is from the Dixie County elections web page, for Dixie County, FL. The "Bylaws Book" image is from the A.J. Whittenberg Elementary School of Engineering "ByLaws/Standing Rules" page. The "Book Sale image is from the Friends of the Batesville (IN) Memorial Library news page. Many thanks to all these sources for the use of these images!