Troll is a fun Norwegian monster movie that ticks off a number of boxes for a kaiju movie. While it doesn’t do anything in terms of stretching character development or plot twists (the big one is seen in the trailer, so that doesn’t do the film any good) it does prove to be a bit…
Tag: pop culture
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986) – John Hughes
My journey through some classic John Hughes continues with this 1986 classic that, like so many of his films, came along at just the right time for me. Matthew Broderick is the titular Ferris Bueller, and despite already hitting his quota of sick days for the year, he’s taking a day off to show his…
Roanoke Ridge: A Creature X Mystery (2020) – J.J. Dupuis
The search for truth and proof combine in a fast-paced, enjoyable read from Toronto’s J.J. Dupuis in Roanoke Ridge. Classified as A Creature X Mystery, the novel combines a mystery (though easily solved) with a healthy dose of, and balanced look at, cryptozoology. One cryptid in particular is at the heart of this story, that…
Free Guy (2021) – Shawn Levy
Inane, silly, and filled with laughs that gamers will delight in Ryan Reynolds new film, Free Guy, hits theatres this week. With a story that feels a little bit like a riff on the classic 1982 sci-fi film, Tron, a programmer, Millie (Jodie Comer) is working her way through the program and game known as…
Whispers Under Ground (2012) – Ben Aaronovitch
The third book in what has become known as the Rivers of London series takes Peter Grant beneath London in the next volume of the urban fantasy series. Working a murder case, while still hunting down the Faceless Man and his students, Grant, alongside Lesley, who has now joined the Folly (where they work from)…
Moon Over Soho (2011) – Ben Aaronovitch
Constable Peter Grant returns to investigate the supernatural in the second novel in the Rivers of London series written by Ben Aaronovitch. Picking up about six months after the first book, the novel sees Grant still dealing with the fallout from the events of the first novel, particularly the attack that left his friend, and…
Project: Hail Mary (2021) – Andy Weir
I loved Andy Weir’s The Martian, and happily dug into Project: Hail Mary (I still need to read Artemis), and was completely wowed by it. I haven’t had this sense of wonder and sense of discovery and exploration since I read Clarke’s Odyssey and Rama series. Ryland Grace, former biologist turned teacher wakes up and…
Fanboys (2009) – Kyle Newman
Featuring a story and script partially penned by Ernest Cline, the author of Ready Player One (and Two) and Armada, Kyle Newman’s film, which gestated for awhile, and had some distribution issues hit the screens in 2009, and while it may not have found its audience then, watching it at home, this film has always…
Chuck (2011) – Versus the Frosted Tips, and Versus the Business Trip
Chuck (Zachary Levi) and Morgan (Joshua Gomez) have some problems in Chuck Versus the Frosted Tips. This episode was written by Phil Klemmer and debuted on 11 November, 2011. The team learns that Morgan has betrayed them and gone to work for Verbanski (Carrie-Anne Moss), who in turn is eager to start something with Casey…
Ready Player Two (2020) – Ernest Cline
Reading like a pop culture infused take on The Bride of Frankenstein, author Ernest Cline takes us back to the virtual realm of the OASIS in his follow-up to the bestselling novel, Ready Player One which delighted geeks planetwide with its quest story wrapped up in movie and culture references that shaped some of our…
The Mind Reels 