Monthly Archives: February 2018

Review of “Annihilation”

Posted on 2018-02-24 by jimbelton

* * * B Annihilation tells the story of Lena (Natalie “Padme” Portman). When her husband Kane (Oscar “Poe” Isaac) shows up after going missing while on a secret mission for the army, he is seriously ill. On the way … Continue reading →

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Review of “Enemy at the Gates”

Posted on 2018-02-23 by jimbelton

* * * B This war film, based on real events, dramatizes the Russian defense of Stalingrad in world war two. Vassili (Jude Law), a young sniper, is made a hero by the Soviets after he saves a propaganda officer, … Continue reading →

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Review of “The Sinner” (season 1)

Posted on 2018-02-23 by jimbelton

* D “The Sinner” is an 8 hour crime/drama miniseries. Cora Tennetti (Jessica Biel) brutally murders a man she doesn’t know. Detective Harry Ambrose (Bill Pullman) becomes obsessed with figuring out why, despite her full confession to the crime and … Continue reading →

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Book Review: “Venom: Dark Origin”

Posted on 2018-02-22 by jimbelton

* * C “Venom: Dark Origin” collects Zeb Wells’s five part origin story for Venom. I’m a fan of Venom. I like the idea of human/alien symbiosis. For example, star pilot Granger in Brian Stableford’s Hooded Swan books has a … Continue reading →

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Book Review: “The King’s Blood”

Posted on 2018-02-21 by jimbelton

* * * B The King’s Blood is Daniel Abraham’s sequel to “The Dragon’s Path”. It follows the characters from the first book: Cithrin, Marcus Wester, Gedar, and Dawson. Claire (Dawson’s wife) and Master Kit are added as viewpoint characters … Continue reading →

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Review of “Black Panther” (mild spoilers)

Posted on 2018-02-17 by jimbelton

* * C It pains me to say it, but Black Panther was just OK. I really liked the first half of the film, which first introduced the mythical kingdom of Wakanda, then had T’Challa (Chadwick Boseman) hunting the vibranium … Continue reading →

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Book Review: “The Dragon’s Path”

Posted on 2018-02-16 by jimbelton

* * C The Dragon’s Path by Daniel Abraham is endorsed by George R. R. Martin, and I can see why. It’s in the same “Sword and Palace Intrigue” subgenre of fantasy as Game of Thrones. The one major fantasy … Continue reading →

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Book Review: “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2: Prelude”

Posted on 2018-02-16 by jimbelton

*  D Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2: Prelude is another anthology of GOTG stories, this time put together to promote the upcoming (at the time) film. There is no attempt to form a cohesive story in this book. The … Continue reading →

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Book Review: “The Eagle’s Gift”

Posted on 2018-02-15 by jimbelton

* * C I really enjoyed Carlos Castaneda’s first two books, The Teachings of Don Juan: A Yaqui Way of Knowledge and  A Separate Reality: Further Conversations with Don Juan. Unfortunately, The Eagle’s Gift, Castaneda’s sixth book, is not nearly as good. Like … Continue reading →

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Book Review: “Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Avengers” (vol. 1)

Posted on 2018-02-15 by jimbelton

* * * B I really enjoyed the first volume of GOTG: Cosmic Avengers, a team up where Iron Man joins the guardians. In this story, the Star Lord’s father is J’Son, the king of the Spartax galactic empire, and … Continue reading →

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