Movie Review: "Hamilton" 07/03/20 Disney

This is a movie review for "Hamilton", released July 3, 2020 via Disney online. I watched this via Disney in the Summer of 2020 before August 9, 2020.

Genre: Biography, Drama, History, Musical

Run Time: 2 Hour and 40 Minutes

Official MPAA Rating (According to IMDB.com):

G / General Audiences

PG / Parental Guidance Suggested

PG-13 / Parents Strongly Cautioned

R / Restricted

X

Not Rated

Trailer

Notable Cast

Daveed Diggs ... Marquis de Lafayette / Thomas Jefferson

Renée Elise Goldsberry ... Angelica Schuyler

Jonathan Groff ... King George

Chris Jackson ... George Washington (as Christopher Jackson)

Jasmine Cephas Jones ... Peggy Schuyler / Maria Reynolds

Lin-Manuel Miranda ... Alexander Hamilton

Leslie Odom Jr. ... Aaron Burr

Okieriete Onaodowan ... Hercules Mulligan / James Madison

Anthony Ramos ... John Laurens / Philip Hamilton

Phillipa Soo ... Eliza Hamilton

Plot

The colonies of America are getting tired of being under the rule of an oversea king. How can the colonies get their independence and set itself up for success? Who are the men and women that raise the nation of the United States of America? This movie follows Alexander Hamilton, one of the founders of the nation, through his life.

Rating Criteria

0/5 – No value whatsoever. Absolute waste of time.

1/5 – Barely worth any time.

2/5 – Pathetic but has a bit of something to hold the attention a little.

3/5 – Somewhat kept the attention but could definitely have used more.

4/5 – Good, but not awe-strikingly amazing. Could have maybe used a bit more to the movie.

5/5 – Go see it! Wonderful movie all around. – characters, music, theme, story line, etc.

3/5 - This movie took me a while to get through. It is a good movie and very informative though I would love to look into more information about the founding of the country. I think that every USA citizen (and maybe others) should watch this to get more information about what created this nation.

There are a few songs that definitely get stuck in my head (especially King George's three songs, "My Shot", "Right-Hand Man") but not all of the songs were great. In fact, the show seems to have 75% song and 25% talk. When you factor in the fact that a lot of the songs are lame as eff, it is a long 2 hours and 40 minutes.

Notable songs:

"My Shot" - Alexander Hamilton (and friends)

"What Come Next?" - King George

Parts of "Right-Hand Man" - George Washington and Alexander Hamilton

Aside the few songs that constantly get stuck in my head and a bit more of an insight into what happened when this nation was founded, this movie was just "meh". I have many other musicals that I would recommend over this one. I am personally glad that I didn't spend money to go to an actual performance because I would have been disappointed, imho, by the whole thing if I had. I cannot say the same about actually going to "Les Miserables" or "Phantom of the Opera". I know, that's a personal preference thing but what can I say but my opinion in my own blog?

Anyways, you're free to watch it yourself if you want. If you don't like fictional history or musicals, you might not like this. Just a fair warning.

Thank you for reading! More reviews are yet to come eventually so keep an eye out.

~ Gracie Mae DeLunac

Contact me?

Twitter @gracie_delunac

Email graciemaedelunac@yahoo.com

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Related Stuff but not actually Related to the Movie "Hamilton"

Alexander Hamilton's Sex Scandal - Drunk History with Lin-Manuel Miranda

"The Real Alexander Hamilton" by Awesomepedia / Reel History

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Movie Review: "2012" 11/13/09

This is a movie review for "2012", released November 13, 2009. I watched this movie via Netflix in the Summer 2020 before August 9, 2020.

Genre: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi, Doomsday

Run Time: 2 Hours and 38 Minutes

Official MPAA Rating (According to IMDB.com):

G / General Audiences

PG / Parental Guidance Suggested

PG-13 / Parents Strongly Cautioned

R / Restricted

X

Not Rated

Trailer

Notable Cast

John Cusack ... Jackson Curtis

Amanda Peet ... Kate Curtis

Chiwetel Ejiofor ... Adrian Helmsley

Thandiwe Newton ... Laura Wilson (as Thandie Newton)

Oliver Platt ... Carl Anheuser

Tom McCarthy ... Gordon Silberman

Woody Harrelson ... Charlie Frost

Danny Glover ... President Thomas Wilson

Liam James ... Noah Curtis

Morgan Lily ... Lilly Curtis

Plot

Doomsday is upon us. Science and the Mayans have predicted it. The world is going to be changed. When the volcano under Old Faithful starts to erupt and changes the global environment, how can humankind survive? Can humans come together to survive doomsday?

Rating Criteria

0/5 – No value whatsoever. Absolute waste of time.

1/5 – Barely worth any time.

2/5 – Pathetic but has a bit of something to hold the attention a little.

3/5 – Somewhat kept the attention but could definitely have used more.

4/5 – Good, but not awe-strikingly amazing. Could have maybe used a bit more to the movie.

5/5 – Go see it! Wonderful movie all around. – characters, music, theme, story line, etc.

3.5/5 - This is a good movie but there are things that made me go "what, seriously?". Examples: the whole idea of being able to outrun a super volcano with a RV, or something getting stuck in the ship door so that the door cannot safely close but the main character can go ahead and fix it. Oh, and one copy of the main character's book surviving the whole ordeal [come on, really?!].

A lot of the movie is set up for action scenes - plane flying through falling buildings, landing on a mountain, running from a volcano, etc. If it weren't for the action, this movie would have nothing. Seriously, and it is sad too. It was good enough to finish the movie but at the same time was disheartening at the end to realize that how poor the plot line was. Well, I guess it works.

Take it or leave it.

Anyways, that's my movie review. Thank you for reading. There will be more reviews to come eventually so keep an eye out!

~ Gracie Mae DeLunac

Contact me?

Twitter @gracie_delunac

Email graciemaedelunac@yahoo.com

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Skype gracelyn2019@yahoo.com

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Movie Review: "A Thousand Words" 03/09/12

This is a movie review for "A Thousand Words", released March 9, 2012. I watched this via Netflix on the June 10, 2020.

Genre: Comedy, Drama

Run Time: 1 Hour and 31 Minutes

Official MPAA Rating (According to IMDB.com):

G / General Audiences

PG / Parental Guidance Suggested

PG-13 / Parents Strongly Cautioned

R / Restricted

X

Not Rated

Trailer

Notable Cast

Eddie Murphy ... Jack McCall

Kerry Washington ... Caroline McCall

Emanuel Ragsdale ... Tyler McCall

Clark Duke ... Aaron Wiseberger

Cliff Curtis ... Dr. Sinja

Plot

Jack McCall is a man that is known to say whatever he has to or needs to to get things done, even if it is lying. He finds out after he promises Dr. Sinja that he'll publish Dr. Sinja's book, that the book is much smaller than he thought and that he never actually read it before making the promise. How can he get himself out of the situation? And to top it off, a tree has sprouted up in his backyard. The funniest thing is the fact that the leaves are dropping at the rate of how many words he's saying - 1 leaf falls for every 1 word that Jack says. How can he stop this connection? How can he limit the rate of the leaves falling when everyone expects him to talk (his wife, his kid, his boss, his clients, people at the coffee shop and on the street, etc)? What will be the outcome when you know that your time limit might be up soon?

Rating Criteria

0/5 – No value whatsoever. Absolute waste of time.

1/5 – Barely worth any time.

2/5 – Pathetic but has a bit of something to hold the attention a little.

3/5 – Somewhat kept the attention but could definitely have used more.

4/5 – Good, but not awe-strikingly amazing. Could have maybe used a bit more to the movie.

5/5 – Go see it! Wonderful movie all around. – characters, music, theme, story line, etc.

4/5 - This is a very good movie that I recommend to most everyone.

The conversation about using one's life to get in touch with others and make amends is a very good thing. If it weren't for Eddie Murphy, this movie would not been as good and probably would have gotten a lower rating (imho). It was interesting to watch the different scenarios of trying to communicate without speaking or writing, though it kinda felt like filler. The ending was good (forgiving and making amends) but a lot of the movie itself was just dragging through the time.

I don't want to spoil the movie much so I'll leave it at that. If you want to watch it, go for it. I don't think it would be that much of a loss of time if you want to check it out.

That's my movie review. Thank you for reading! More reviews to come eventually.

~ Gracie Mae DeLunac

Contact me?

Twitter @gracie_delunac

Email graciemaedelunac@yahoo.com

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Skype gracelyn2019@yahoo.com

493.

Movie Review: "Burlesque" 11/24/10

This is a movie review for "Burlesque", released November 24, 2010. I watched this movie on Netflix on July 8, 2020.

Genre: Drama, Music, Musical, Romance

Run Time: 1 Hour and 59 Minutes

Official MPAA Rating (According to IMDB.com):

G / General Audiences

PG / Parental Guidance Suggested

PG-13 / Parents Strongly Cautioned

R / Restricted

X

Not Rated

Trailer

Notable Cast

Cher ... Tess

Christina Aguilera ... Ali

Eric Dane ... Marcus

Cam Gigandet ... Jack

Julianne Hough ... Georgia

Alan Cumming ... Alexis

Peter Gallagher ... Vince

Kristen Bell ... Nikki

Stanley Tucci ... Sean

Plot

Midwesterner Ali wants to become a dancer, so she catches a bus out to Las Vegas. She stumbles upon the club called Burlesque, run by Tess. Right off the bat, Tess says "no". The bartender Jack gives her a job as a waitress and she studies the show as she tends to customers. She asks Tess again if she can become a dancer and gets a chance to be one of the dancers. When one of the other dancers tries to sabotage Ali's dancing career, Ali shows that she can sing and dance at the same time. During all of this, Tess' ex husband is trying to sell off the club to a real estate mogul. How can they save the club? What is the future of the Burlesque? Can Ali have the career she wanted? (And can she be with Jack, or is the "engagement" to his fiance really going to keep them apart?)

Rating Criteria

0/5 – No value whatsoever. Absolute waste of time.

1/5 – Barely worth any time.

2/5 – Pathetic but has a bit of something to hold the attention a little.

3/5 – Somewhat kept the attention but could definitely have used more.

4/5 – Good, but not awe-strikingly amazing. Could have maybe used a bit more to the movie.

5/5 – Go see it! Wonderful movie all around. – characters, music, theme, story line, etc.

3.5/5 - *SPOILERS* This is a cute movie but not one of my most favorite musicals. Christina Aguilera and Cher are great singers, even though Cher is getting older, but the plot line was thrown together in a sporadic mash-up. We have the drama of the girl getting closer to the guy but he acts as if he is gay, then he turns out to be straight with a fiance that is mostly out of the picture, and then the fiance shows up. I mean come on.... Why does this romance line have to even be in this movie?!

And then we have the sparring between the dancers and Ali. In the clip below, we see how one of the dancers tries to sabotage Ali's dancing career and then it turns out that Ali can sing, which changes the club completely. Why not use all of the talents of the dancers and let the girls sing instead of lip-syncing?

"Tough Lover":

But wait! There's more! Tess' ex wants to sell off the club (since he has half ownership still). There's a dude that wants to buy it, who is being with one of the dancers, but he wants to destroy it and build something humongous. So what will the floundering dancers and Tess do?

All of these plots lines somehow fit together to make the movie and gives you what it can. Some of the songs are wonderful whereas others are just trying too hard.

Well, I suggest that this movie is to be watched but I warn you that it isn't the best musical out there. It isn't a musical per se, anyways. It just happens to be a movie with a lot of music in it. *shrugs* I don't know what else I can say.

If more songs could have been like the opening song "Something's Got a Hold On Me" (seen below), I would have rated this movie much higher.

Anyways, that's my movie review. Thank you for reading! More reviews to come eventually.

~ Gracie Mae DeLunac

Contact me?

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Skype gracelyn2019@yahoo.com

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Movie Review: "Hail Satan?" 04/17/19

This is a movie review for the documentary movie "Hail Satan?", released April 17, 2019. I watched this via Hulu on June 30, 2020.

Genre: Documentary

Run Time: 1 hour and 35 minutes

Official MPAA Rating (According to IMDB.com):

G / General Audiences

PG / Parental Guidance Suggested

PG-13 / Parents Strongly Cautioned

R / Restricted

X

Not Rated

Trailer

Plot

What is the Satanic Temple? What do they believe? This is a documentary about the Satanic Temple, how they view the world, and their quest to get a monument put up in Little Rock, Arkansas next to a monument to the Ten Commandments.

Rating Criteria

0/5 – No value whatsoever. Absolute waste of time.

1/5 – Barely worth any time.

2/5 – Pathetic but has a bit of something to hold the attention a little.

3/5 – Somewhat kept the attention but could definitely have used more.

4/5 – Good, but not awe-strikingly amazing. Could have maybe used a bit more to the movie.

5/5 – Go see it! Wonderful movie all around. – characters, music, theme, story line, etc.

3/5 - Honestly, I watched this to get perspective on something I had never looked into before. No offense meant but I think the Satanic Temple, as viewed through this documentary, is a joke. "Satanists are the original trolls" and are looking to give people a different view on the world (not just one theology, for example). They are a "non-violent" and "anti-authority" religion - Embrace your freedom to express or feel anything, and to make the world better.

I like the idea of viewing other religions and standing up for what you believe in but, at the same time, this almost feels like the Satanic Temple is mocking religion and still call themselves a religion. I really don't think that "In God We Trust" or "One Nation Under God" needs to be taken out of the context of American history but that maybe non-Christian religions should be able to say what is put up in public areas (like the Ten Commandments in public). How butt-hurt would everyone get if all evidence of Christianity is taken out of the public areas? On the other hand, how butt-hurt are non-Christians feeling about their religion not getting noticed in public areas? Should we have an area to put up a thing for all religions (Hindus, Jews, Muslims, Christians, Satanists, Odinists, Wiccans, etc.)? Then what about atheists and agnostics?

Religion is a difficult subject. Just bringing the subject up can get people on pins and needles. Should we, therefore, wash religious memorabilia/symbols/monuments completely out of the public areas (especially on governmental property)? I won't tell you what to think but maybe you should think about it.

On that note, you can watch this documentary if you wish. It might give you an insight into someone else's perspective.

That's my review. Sorry I can't talk about it more but it (religion) is a hard topic to talk about.

Thanks for reading! More reviews to come eventually so keep an eye out!

~ Gracie Mae DeLunac

Contact me?

Twitter @gracie_delunac

Email graciemaedelunac@yahoo.com

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Skype gracelyn2019@yahoo.com

519.

Movie Review: "Crime + Punishment" 08/24/18

This is a movie review for "Crime + Punishment", released August 24, 2018. I watched this via Hulu on June 30, 2020.

*MIGHT NOT be suitable for sensitive people*

Genre: Documentary

Run Time: 1 hour and 52 minutes

Official MPAA Rating (According to IMDB.com):

G / General Audiences

PG / Parental Guidance Suggested

PG-13 / Parents Strongly Cautioned

R / Restricted

X

Not Rated

Trailer

Plot

In 2010, the New York Police Department (NYPD) officially got rid of their quotas for collars (arrests) and summonses per month but still silently push officers to fill these illegal quotas, for income purposes. Twelve cops stood out publicly about this to stop it from continuing. This documentary is about the illegal quotas and those that stood up against it publicly.

Rating Criteria

0/5 – No value whatsoever. Absolute waste of time.

1/5 – Barely worth any time.

2/5 – Pathetic but has a bit of something to hold the attention a little.

3/5 – Somewhat kept the attention but could definitely have used more.

4/5 – Good, but not awe-strikingly amazing. Could have maybe used a bit more to the movie.

5/5 – Go see it! Wonderful movie all around. – characters, music, theme, story line, etc.

4/5 - This is a very interesting documentary. Having watched this right after the George Floyd incident and Black Lives Matter exploding across the world, I was wanting to see what the police officer side of police corruption could be. I still think that there are good cops (and bad cops obviously) but that doesn't mean that all police should be defunded.

Anyways... According to this movie, a lot of NYPD officers have been pressured to fill these illegal quotas for collars (arrests) and tickets/summonses or else they would be sent to harder work. Being a whistle-blower against the illegal quotas made the officers vulnerable to being retaliated against by their superiors. Some methods of retaliation include no patrol car duty, made to stand in one spot and be unable to do anything but stand there (even if a citizen came up asking for help), change the officers' partners, change shifts scheduled regardless of child care situations, write up the officer for petty things, keep them under watch, etc.

The death of Eric Gardner was probably due to the quotas, said one cop. Like George Floyd in 2020, Eric Gardner was a black man that was put into a chokehold. (Situation is slightly different as Floyd was overdosing on drugs and could not get the help that he needed thanks to Covid-19 procedures.) Anyways, Gardner's arrest was probably due to the quotas (to get those numbers up) and the chokehold ["I can't breathe." then passing out and dying due to suffocation] brought him to his demise. If he hadn't been black (I know that sounds bad!), it would be a possibility that he wouldn't have died or that they would have used other methods. But since he was not white, that could have been a reason why the officers acted as they did.

I am not 100% convinced that the quotas were the reason why Gardner died but since Floyd died in 2020, things have been not so good for police officers. I still back the good ones but I agree that there needs to be reform somehow. A change needs to happen but might be much more than superior officers - the quotas could be initiated/perpetuated by the police commissioner or mayor or federal.

One big question brought up by the documentary is "how do we help communities support/trust cops when so many act illegally and rudely (resorting to violence and arrests for everything)?".

The hardest hit people of the quotas are the poor and minority, hence blacks and other non-white people, putting them in prison for things they didn't commit (losing days of their life) and causing ridiculous $ charges that pads the pocket of the city budget.

One cop said "these new cops don't know how to talk with people anymore and how to de-escalate issues". We don't necessarily need to downgrade to social workers in place of police but there should be a way to learn how to de-escalate issues. The biggest problem is the fact that there are so many police officers out there that love to power trip. Of course, many of those that apply to be a police officer are going there for the power, not for the "service to the community". Is there a way to modify the task force so that we can ween out the bad officers and keep the good ones? Is there a way to police the police? This seems like a constant struggle, even today in 2021. Like I said earlier, I still back the police (in general) because of the good officers but am wary of the potentially bad officers, especially since I am a female and especially after reading about the death of Sarah Everard in the UK [where she submitted to an arrest and ended up being molested and killed by the officer].

IMHO, if quotas are actively shut down as illegal (and maybe people police the police some or another group, not in the police's pocket, police the police) then maybe we can get back to police doing their job of protecting the community and looking out for the best of the community, not their promotions and perks and city bonuses. Can we get to that point, though? That's the biggest question. Can we step back from a grab for money and get to community protection (and not just for one skin color or gender or religion)? After over a year past George Floyd's death, there is still mistrust within the police system (especially in Minneapolis). The autonomous zone that popped up around the area where the whole George Floyd incident happened has since been taken down [supposedly June 2021]. BLM has dimmed down but I still hear remnants every so often, even outside of Minnesota. Sad to say, I do have a feeling that issues with police officers will forever continue to be a thing. I would love to say that we can all go to a utopia state of living but the reality of the matter is the fact that there are differences between people which cause tensions (even if you are not trying to have issues with others) and there is a fondness for money [especially to keep your city/county/state running]. I would look forward to a sense of peace across the board between community members and the police officers but we'll have to see.

Sorry for this being so darn heavy but that's something that comes with the territory when talking about BLM and police officers.

Anyways, that's my review. Thank you for reading. There will be more reviews to eventually come so keep an eye out!

~ Gracie Mae DeLunac

Contact me?

Twitter @gracie_delunac

Email graciemaedelunac@yahoo.com

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Skype gracelyn2019@yahoo.com

1154.

Movie Review: "Killing Them Safely" 11/27/15

This is a movie review for the documentary "Killing Them Safely", released November 27, 2015. I watched this via Hulu on June 19, 2020.

Genre: Documentary

Run Time: 1 hour and 40 minutes

Official MPAA Rating (According to IMDB.com):

G / General Audiences

PG / Parental Guidance Suggested

PG-13 / Parents Strongly Cautioned

R / Restricted

X

Not Rated

Trailer

Plot

This is a documentary about tasers and the good and bad regarding them. Are they really as safe as they claim to be? Is there a better way for police to deal with the public without using a gun or a taser?

Rating Criteria

0/5 – No value whatsoever. Absolute waste of time.

1/5 – Barely worth any time.

2/5 – Pathetic but has a bit of something to hold the attention a little.

3/5 – Somewhat kept the attention but could definitely have used more.

4/5 – Good, but not awe-strikingly amazing. Could have maybe used a bit more to the movie.

5/5 – Go see it! Wonderful movie all around. – characters, music, theme, story line, etc.

4/5 - This documentary was a very good look into Tasers. The Taser company really did not seem to want to admit their faults about covering up data or misinforming the public and police about the risks of cardiac fibrillation / metabolic acidosis, etc. When confronted, Taser tried to say that every case of Taser incidences that resulted in death was not due to the Taser but would have been caused by something else, though exposure to high voltages for a long period of time could disrupt the heart from the normal rhythm and therefore cause death (even a doctor told them this after studying pigs and they still denied that it would affect humans this way!). Taser, in my honest opinion, is a corrupt company that thinks they are doing the best, that they are not at fault, and will continue [at least as of the time of the documentary] to be corrupt as they look for their best interest. Yes, I agree that Tasers (used properly by a trained person, especially in the case of police incidences] can be better than fatally shooting a human with a gun but that doesn't mean that they are completely faultless.

Anyways, that's my review! Thanks for reading! More are on their way eventually.

~ Gracie Mae DeLunac

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Skype gracelyn2019@yahoo.com

401.

Show Review: Anime "The Future Diary / Mirai Nikki" 2011

This is a show review for the anime named "The Future Diary" or "Mirai Nikki". This is at least the second time that I have watched this show.

Trailer: 

Genre: Animation, Action, Drama, Survival Game

Plot: 

Yukiteru Amano is a normal and boring high school kid. To get by with life, he writes a diary on his phone about things that he has observed throughout his day. One day, he experiences a life-changing event: his phone can predict the future. He's not the only one; there are a total of twelve future diaries. Each of these twelves future diaries are drafted into a fight-to-the-death contest. Who will win? To what ends will everyone go to survive this fight? Will Amano be one of the last ones to stand?

Review:

3.5/5 - *SPOILERS* This isn't a bad show but it is violent (obviously because it is a fight to the death struggle). The biggest issue that I had with the show this round was how terrible Yuno can be. When I previously watched this show, I think that I had missed some information because it felt a lot more complete/explained. I was surprised about Yuno being the first iteration in the second world but then her attitude made me like the show less. I mean, come on... Kidnapping your "loved one", holding him hostage, not caring about his friends or family, and all because you have a huge crush on him even though he might not care for you as much as you do for him (but are you really caring for him if you're going AWOL against everyone that's in his life?). She's nuts. I know that's a type of character [potentially called "yandere"] but it is hard to truly like Yuno because of it, which is why I knocked it down so much.

Okay, I get that the first iteration Yuno already had to go through the game once before coming back and killing the second iteration so she could play again, and there is a lot of mental stress from playing the game (and twice for her) but it is sad for Yuno to be as nuts as she is. I'm glad that Yuki was able to stay around for her, though at the same time it is hard to see him with a gal that is completely off her rocker.

I also was able to watch the OVA "Redial" which is a epilogue episode for the show and it really makes everything much better. At the end of the canon series, it was just a big black hole of emotion and no sense of closure. The OVA, however, wrapped it up and somehow the third iteration Yuno was able to break through to the second iteration Yuki (who is the winner of the second iteration death match after first iteration Yuno was killed). Between the second iteration Yuki and the third iteration Yuno, there's a hope for the future that the original series never had and a closure that is perfect. This OVA is a necessity to watch for anyone that watches this show.

Anyways, this is a good show. Not everyone would love it but I've warned you! Thanks for reading my review. There are more to come. Keep an eye out!

~ Gracie Mae DeLunac

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562.

Book Review: "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone", 1997

This is a book review for "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone", released 1997. I had previously read this book in Spanish ("Harry Potter y la piedra filosofal") back in 2008 when I was studying in Costa Rica. I had purchased the Spanish version while I was at a book store. I remember going to a picnic with my classmates and sitting in the shade, reading the book with the dictionary next to me. It took a while to read the book, obviously, because it used a lot of words that I did not know but I did enjoy it at that time.

Upon deciding recently that I would be taking a look into more banned or controversial books, the Harry Potter series came up. I decided it is finally time to try reading the whole series, since I have watched the movies multiple times and enjoy the HP 'verse.

"Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone"

Author: J.K. Rowling

Language Read: English

Published: 1997

Genre: Fantasy Fiction, High School

Finished reading this book: July 26, 2021

Plot

An ordinary 11 year old boy named Harry Potter finds out that he is anything but ordinary. In fact, he's a wizard. His parents were both wizards too! He grew up being miserable and was treated like he was as an inferior being by his uncle Vernon, Aunt Petunia (mom's sister), and cousin Dudley [whom likes to annoy and bully Harry] but now he finds out that he has been accepted to go to a school for wizards called Hogwarts. "One of the finest schools for wizards," says the messenger Hagrid after informing that he has been accepted.

However, Harry finds out that he isn't just a wizard. He's a famous wizard! Why? Because a dark wizard named Voldemort tried to kill him when he was a toddler and he survived, though anyone else that got on Voldemort's bad side was killed when he decided they should die. So how did Harry survive such a death sentence? What's in store for Harry? How can Harry grow up in the wizarding world as a preteen with such a history behind him (and potential high expectations from the wizarding world)? Can he find his classes on time...? Being a preteen is so tough as is! Good luck, Harry!

Review

4/5 - *SPOILERS* I obviously am not the targeted age range for these books but this was still good. It lost my attention for a bit and I picked up another book ("The Testaments" by Margaret Atwood, which I am still slowly reading). When I returned to reading this book, it eventually became more interesting. I would say about halfway was the turning point.

My biggest hang-up was the fact that I was comparing the book to the movie, since I have seen the movie many times.

Comparisons between the book and the movie:

- In the book, Harry meets Professor Quirrell and shakes his hand; in the movie, Quirrell and Harry do not shake hands. [This makes me wonder when Voldemort actually did take possession of some of Quirrell's body.] 

- In the book, Malfoy is slightly introduced to Harry when they are getting fit for robes in Diagon Alley; in the movie, it is after they have gotten off of the train.

- In the book, Ron asks if he can sit in the train compartment with Harry; in the movie, it is the other way around.

- In the movie, Harry, Ron and Hermoine all receive detention (for what, I don't recall); in the book, it is Harry, Hermoine and Neville receiving detention because Neville went out to warn Harry that Malfoy was going to catch them out past curfew and tell on them [all 4 went to the forest, but it was Neville, not Ron].

- In the book, in the trials to get to the Sorcerer's Stone, they did not have to relax to get out of the Devil's Snare to fall through the snare (Hermoine beat it by using a flare from her wand); in the movie, they had to relax to get through or use a spell.

- In the book, in the flying trial, there are 3 brooms that they all had to use to catch the evasive key; in the movie, there was 1 broom that they entrusted to the youngest seeker (Harry) to get the key by himself.

A few things that I saw in the book that I liked that the movie did not cover as well (or at all):

- Hagrid takes Harry shopping but then brings him back to his Uncle's because school doesn't start for a while. We then get to see Uncle Vernon drop Harry off, mock Harry for there not being a 9 3/4 platform, and then head off to get Dudley's pig tail removed.

- After Norbert the dragon is hatched, we see how fast it grows and it actually bites Ron on the hand. The bite gets infected and he has to go to the hospital to have it looked at. (I wonder what the nurse said, honestly, since dragons have been banned as pets.) We also get to hear how Harry and Hermoine snuck the basket with Norbert in it up to the astronomy tower [supposed to be closed unless there is a class in session].

- We find out that the broom given to Harry was in fact a gift from Professor McGonagall, whereas the movie glossed over the sender's name (but McGonagall gave Harry a smile). The note said to not open it in the Main Hall, so what does Harry do in the movie but open it in the Main Hall. :-/

- We find out that James Potter (Harry's dad) gave the Invisibility Cloak to Dumbledore for safe keeping at some point, which is why Harry received it for Christmas.

- We find out that Snape offered to referee for a Quidditch match because of the whole "Quirrell controlling the broom" incident and that Snape wanted to pay back a debt to Harry's dad for saving his life previously.

- In the trials to get to where the Sorcerer's Stone was, there was an area with Potions. We think it was set up by Snape. The book did not go into much detail but Hermoine was able to figure it out and send Harry forward. I would have loved more detail about this in the movie, which they cut it out completely.

 

Honestly, my two biggest frustrations is the fact that Neville isn't given as much credit in the movie as he was in the book and the fact that there were parts of the trials that were cut out of (or modified) in the movie. Aside that, the movie was pretty spot on with the book.

From my perspective, it was definitely at a lower reading level than I have been used to but I have been told that they progress as the series continues, as if the reading level grows with the targeted reader. I think I enjoyed trying to read this in Spanish back in 2008 much more than I did in English in 2021, but that's just me. I did like this but probably will just stick to the movie for Sorcerer's Stone.

For those of you that still have not read this book or have someone younger that does want to read it, I'll give warnings: this book contains death, threatening death, violence, violence against animals / hunting, witchcraft/spells/brews (duh), and bullying.

Is this a book to read? Sure, why not. If you're too much of a conservative that you think a book about witchcraft/wizardry is evil, then stay away. Otherwise, keep an open mind about it and see what you think!

Thanks for reading my review! More to come eventually.

~ Gracie

Contact me?

Twitter @gracie_delunac

Email graciemaedelunac@yahoo.com

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Skype gracelyn2019@yahoo.com

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Show Review: Anime "Beastars" 2019

This is a show review for the animated show "Beastars", released in 2019 on Netflix. I finished watching the second season on July 25, 2021 via Netflix.

Trailer: 

Genre: Action, Crime, Drama, High School, Romance

Plot: In a world of humanoid animals, it is a matter of life and death while trying to live in a full-time school with herbivores and carnivores. A male grey wolf named Legoshi is simply trying to live his life as a teenage boy in high school. However, being a wolf in puberty is difficult. He both feels the desire to eat meat but he also does not want to eat meat. He meets a dwarf rabbit named Haru and finds her to be way more than he could have ever thought an herbivore could be. He finds that he has feelings for her but it is hard for him to understand how to have a relationship with such a small fragile herbivore.

Can herbivores and carnivores live in peace? Is there more to co-habitation than merely being in the same room/class or group? Can carnivores overcome their desire to eat meat? Can a boy and a girl of different species have a relationship more than just friends, especially if one is a carnivore and the other is an herbivore?

Review:

4/5 - *SPOILERS* The problem that a lot of people would have with this show is the fact that it is "furry" (or humanoid animals, personified animals). Once you get past the fact that the characters are animals with human intelligence and behaving/talking/walking like humans, it is a very interesting show. Take your average high school, mix the characters with animals, and see how it goes. Humans have limits for their actions but trying to deal with human-like puberty in high school while being a carnivore has a lot more problems. How does one fight the desire to kill and eat meat (considering carnivores eat herbivores) when eating meat is illegal, since meat means that it was an animal/living being at one point? The struggles of wanting to eat meat, finding a common ground between carnivores and herbivores, fighting natural urges like ravaging others (sex or meat/devouring), and just trying to grow up all come together in this show. It is not a pretty sight to see how bad a being can act when having to fight such urges/struggles, but it could be a way to communicate how humans (not personified animals or furries or humanoid animals, but real human beings) can have animalistic tendencies that we have to fight or deal with.

The average human teenager has to deal with hormones that can drive one crazy or cause him/her to do things that adults wouldn't do [on a spur of a moment or not]. Many teenagers have killed because they think their parent/guardian was out to get them or too harsh. Many teenagers have raped or killed because they thought that they were in love and didn't like what reality was. It is pretty bad to have to see the similarities between humans and animals, but it shouldn't be brushed aside. To confront one's dark instincts or desires is to live. To allow yourself to fall for your baser instincts is bad according to society, so stand up against it. Find a way to acknowledge it and fight it, like Legoshi fights his carnivoristic desire to kill and eat meat.

For those that are squeamish, the talk of such things may be overwhelming. However, I think that this show has qualities that give it value enough to look past the whole "furry"/personified animals thing. Like I said, fighting one's dark desires/instincts, growing up as a teenager, etc are what make this show interesting and valuable.

I do not like that so many people look past this show because of the furry/personified animals thing, though I don't blame them because so many think that it is trying to promote furries and beastiality. I understand their logic, especially considering the fact that the female dwarf rabbit Haru has sex with multiple animals (at different times). They do not show the intimate details of the sexual act but oh man could that ruffle a few people in the wrong way.

On the other hand, this is a tricky subject. There are no non-animal humans, so human on animal is not a thing for your usual definition of "beastiality". Even though they talk about sex and have apparent scenes of sex, no genitalia is shown (not even a bulge of a cock in pants when the males are aroused). All animals are covered by modest clothing at all times, except maybe to show off some cleavage or boobs [modest nipples at that if they are shown]. However, if one is inclined to feel arousal towards the characters, it is a possibility one might try to blame this show for causing thoughts about beastiality. This is also a "slippery slope" for those that think that furries are good (especially cosplaying as these characters). So warning about this show because in different minds, it can gives ideas to some people that most society would say is evil/bad. [To each their own.] If you can find a way to enjoy the show without making it too personal, then go for it. Otherwise, your choice.

There's other things that I could go on about with this show but that's all that I'm going to put down. Even with the furry/beastiality possibility, I would personally suggest this show. It is pretty good. I enjoy it though there are ugly parts in it, but that's what life is about to get you to think about things, right?

That's my show review! I look forward to season 3 whenever it comes out.

Thank you for reading my review. More reviews to come eventually.

~ Gracie Mae DeLunac

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Skype gracelyn2019@yahoo.com

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Show Review: Anime "King's Game The Animation" 2017

This is a show review for the anime "King's Game The Animation", released in 2017. I watched this around May-June of 2021 via Funimation.

Trailer: 

Genre: Horror, High School, Supernatural

Plot: A regular high school student named Nobuaki Kanazawa has recently moved to a new school. He stays off in the distance when dealing with his classmates but we do not learn about what happened to him until something strange starts happening to him. He and his classmates receive text messages saying that there will be a game played with the classmates all involved. If you do not pay attention to the rules, you will be punished. If you fail your tasks, you will be punished. By "punished", the game obviously means death. (We're talking Final Destination or Saw kind of deaths.) Nobuaki then reveals that he had to go through this game previously with his last class, but that all of his classmates had died. He literally tells them to take the game seriously and they do not believe him until one classmate starts spontaneously bleeding out of all orifices and pores of his body and dies in front of them. How can they survive? Can more than one survive? How far will people go to survive this game? Who is the King?

Review:

3.5/5 - *SPOILERS* This was an interesting anime but the ending was very anti-climatic. This is not an anime for those with weak stomachs or that do not like the look of blood. Many of the deaths are extremely graphic whereas others are implied. Either way, it really does give it a feel of Final Destination ("Did you feel the brutality of it?" and fighting against death's choice/plan). However, many "committing suicide" at the same time is hard to understand when the power behind the King's Game is never shown like Final Destination movies show death working to kill off the survivors. For this, I knock the rating down some. (Give me the supernatural power [or other people] killing off the people!)

Anyways, the ending....was much less than what I was expecting. I was rather disappointed. It was not very fulfilling (good or bad) and could not give a decent understanding. At least with Final Destination, we had the remaining survivor or last few and the knowledge of something isn't quite right. With King's Game (without giving more than moderate spoilers), it seems like there is no reasoning in the supernatural power behind the game. Death is easy enough to understand but to have some strange deaths (like twisting a head around without using anything) is just weird. What is this supernatural power, if not death? At the end, we don't know, honestly. So what does it want or how can it be stopped? Who knows, which is another reason why I knocked the rating down some. It is interesting but the logic behind this supernatural killing force is strange to say the least. *shrugs*

Do I suggest? Kinda yes but that ending really put me off so it is up to you. However, make sure that you are not squeamish nor have a low tolerance for super violence (for example: one character starts cutting off his own leg to make a human doll of body parts). Would I rewatch this show? Probably not but who knows what the future holds. I would love a sequel series or maybe watch the movie (2011).

Anyways, thank you for reading! More reviews to come eventually.

~ Gracie Mae DeLunac

Contact me?

Twitter @gracie_delunac

Email graciemaedelunac@yahoo.com

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Skype gracelyn2019@yahoo.com

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