MEDIOCRE AT BEST.....
922792
I chose this book because I like mysteries, it had an above-average rating, and it was on sale.  I can only assume the rating came from friends of the author or readers who received free copies.  While the basic storyline shows promise, the improbability of MANY actions detracts.  How are we supposed to feel passionate about a "hero" who abandons his toddler when the child's mother is killed?  How does it make sense that said hero/cop receives a death threat on his witness, but alerts no one of the danger and proceeds to the scene with no back-up?  Did ANYBODY actually edit this book?  Stilted dialogue is another problem.  Simply said, a disappointing read.
4140715
I have to agree with the opinion of many: poor script, sometimes painfully so, pretty good special effects....and overlong for a single night's viewing. The acting was lukewarm to pretty bad, but, the actors are not to blame....they did the best that could be done with what they were given to say and do. Essentially we are given innumerable cliches  strung loosely together in barely credible sequences. Edited down to no more than 60% of its current length it might have been a halfway decent disaster movie....as it is, if you watch it for the disasters, be sure to have the popcorn ready to fill in the hackneyed material in between.
2436687
The fact that the story is left unresolved isn't particularly an issue for me... In my opinion, the movie is decent, but the plain truth is that it is simply not that interesting. Of course, it is a good premise... basing a film on the human ability to deal with guilt. The writer has chosen a random and mundane situation, I'm sure intentionally, to delve into for the story, but it just isn't all that good. The acting is mediocre, the pace is painfully slow... It's just not right for everyone. I have a high tolerance for a slow-paced film that eventually leads you somewhere, but this movie was slow-paced and led me to a disappointing ending. 2 stars for the idea, but that's about it.
2765520
Not gonna lie.... pretty shallow, boring and definitely not enough.... well anything really. The songs are all too short and underdeveloped. There are hints of something but it never quite breaks through. Generic would be a good word for this album.
4606620
Similar stories and characters have been presented in better books written by better authors. At least in this book the writing, character development and story can be summed up with one word, mediocre. This is the first book I have read by Mark Lawrence. I am not particularly impressed with his writing style. It is possible to love the worst of people populating a book, for instance Joe Abercrombie's Glotka. In spite of a could-be sympathetic backstory involving the assassination of his mother and little brother the protagonist in Prince of Thorns is a heartless, ruthless braggart who never offers enough substance for us to care about anything he does. Perhaps a clever and compelling story could have made up for this but in its place we get a mediocre tale populated with characters lacking depth and originality. I read the book through to the end thinking that being part of a series which had received decent review ratings increased the chances of there being something worthwhile developing by the end of book one. There is nothing about this first book that interests me in completing the trilogy or reading another book by this author.
439761
Book 4, "Tip of the Spear-Battlecruiser Alamo Series," continues the mediocre storyline and the stumbling, unskilled writing of Mr. Tongue.

The "Alamo," crewed by both the intrepid, the competent, and the inept, the self-doubting, return to the Jefferson campaign of Book 3. Both books, 3 and 4, should have been combined, as the story is nothing special: it's pretty shallow and pedestrian. But, most eBook readers are fully aware of the greed of so many eBook authors-publish shoddy work to make a buck.

Mr. Tongue has a mediocre storyline in the "Battlecruiser Alamo." He also has little writing skill or talent. The author writes as a watchmaker with one tool-a hammer. The writing is filled with mistakes and not pretty. His basic ignorance of most subjects he includes in his books, is limitless. Apparently "ignorance is bliss" is this eBook author's world.

Would I read this book again, knowing what it is? No. The 2 stars in rating are overly generous.

Why no storyline synopsis? Author's laziness and hubris not deserving of a recap of the eBook.

Would I buy this book? No. Feel cheated even though eBook was read via the monthly Kindle Unlimited fee.

Would I recommend this eBook or author? No.

Read fully via Kindle Unlimited.
3471729
CONTAINS SPOILERS

The only thing positive I can say about this book is that it was an original idea and had some cleverly worded inner dialogue....everything else was BORING and OVERLY DRAMATIC.  This is the plot as I saw it:
  2 souls one body...this is  BAD...though no one tells you why....a brother and sister take interest for no apparent reason....main character is NERVOUS.....main character is in AGONY....main character is SCARED....main character is in ANGUISH....main character is CONFLICTED.....main character is taken away.....sees others who are like her and are operated on for it.....main character escapes..blah, blah, blah.

I had such high hopes for this book, but I found myself skipping paragraphs just to get to the end.  It is certainly not the worst YA book I have read, but it definitely does not live up to all the 5 star reviews.
891415
After anticipating this novel for several years, I found myself bored with it almost immediately. Between the neo-science terminology, choppy chapters, cartoon characters...it's all very mediocre.

Maybe because I have read Daniel Silva, Carlos Ruiz Zafon, PD James, Elizabeth George in the years since "DaVinci Code" and "Angels & Demons", I find his work to be lacking in so many ways.
1277565
Gone, But Not Forgotten might have made a good book.  The concept for this story is interesting and well designed.  But the dialog in this film is amateurish at best. Kudos to the guy who played Drew's brother for being the most believable actor in the story. I found the Doctor fairly believable as well. Having said that, everyone's performance including the 2 leads looked like something out of community theater that forgot to rehearse before going in front of the camera. Every performance was weak! It's as if there was noone behind the camera directing at all!

On the technical side, the audio was particularly bad: Vocal overdubs that were totally sterile (no ambiance at all), dialog levels that changed from scene to scene, and a music bed that was disproportionately loud to the dialog.  I'm convinced that whoever did the audio post-production only did it to demo their own music.

Then there's the poor camera work and lighting. While the camera was steady and properly exposed, there was no thought given to camera position or lighting the set to make the shots more interesting. NONE! The scenic beauty of the location was never used to full advantage.

In every respect, this looks like a film student's first try at makking a home movie. How it gathered any nods at all is totally beyond my imagination.

All in all, this is a story I would like to see again with a real budget and a real crew and some real actors and some real post-production.
1269003
Not exactly sure why this movie did so well in the reviews. I can appreciate good cheesy comedy if executed well, but this just kinda stunk. The plot was lame with big holes and unrealistic characters and happenings, the acting mediocre at best. Sorry but it jusy wasn't funny no matter how much I tried to like it. Waste of $4 and timespent... waiting for it to get better.
1751605
Actually 2 1/2 stars . Drain is pretty good , so is the song Polly . Lounge act is awesome . Most of this album is a power pop album - not all that much different then the hair band nightmare it vanquished . The differences being Cobain is a brooder , hence the silly lyrics .... the other difference - the musicianship is mediocre ( and that's being kind ) .The best guitar player in the band is behind the drum kit ... go figure . This is at the core of Nirvanas legacy . They made it acceptable ..and fashionable to be mediocre. The music industry finds itself in a bit of a quandry these days . Why ? Because no one knows how to play beyond the beginner level . Why ? Because the critics can't cope with anything too complex . With the level of undesereved hype and praise associated with this album you can expect more of the same and untill things change , the " genius "  of Kurt Cobain will linger ...like one of his brooding songs .
2268495
A mediocre movie that was rather boring. The plot was laughably bad - a lot of plot elements made no sense or was very cheesy. The acting was poor or over the top (perhaps this was intentional?) - the director probably tried to inject comedy into parts of this movie, but it didn't turn out correctly and/or didn't fit the overall theme of the situation or movie as a whole.
Most of the characters in the movie also seemed oblivious or idiotic, and you really have to suspend your belief on how illogical and ridiculous their actions are. CGI/special effects was inconsistent - sometimes the creature looks ok, sometimes it seemed like something from a 90s CGI cutscene.
Overall, I feel I wasted 2 hours of my life watching this movie. I was very disappointed since I liked the director Bong Joon-ho's other movies, such as Snowpiercer.
2923775
Depp is great, storyline could have been good...but truth is the lead Lone Ranger dude was annoying, whiney and just so poorly acted out that it was hard to grit my teeth and just stick the movies out.  And unfortunately Tonto was not a strong enough character to hold the movie alone.  There was one place in the flick with a strong amazing score...and I hoped it was about to get better...it lasted about two minutes and then we were back to failure.  I'd save your money and wait until this is a free rental.  I want my $3 and two hours back.
674773
I'm sorry that I can't give this Brad Thor book a better score. But after my standard measure if 150 pages and the plot line and especially the characters just never took/hold of that little place that says "keep reading....trust your past experience with Thor.....it's gonna get better".
I see I'm in a minority position on this one, but it just ain't that great...T least in my opinion of the first 150 pages. There are so many better ones and so little time to waste.
387541
I honestly don't know what all the positive reviews are about....this was in essence beyond boring and predictable.  The acting was laughable.  The plot....what plot?  At times, I was speaking to my screen, saying "something happen, please! somebody kill somebody...please".  Between groans and chuckles, there were maybe two moments of unpredictability.  I only watched this because I saw the previews for the sequel. Now I know to avoid a movie I can assume is as monotonous as the first.  SKIP.
2068300
Kinda boring really...a bit difficult to follow some of the storylines as well.  Hardly "a captivating Western"...that is quite a stretch and actually should be considered false advertising for this one.  Too bad since the majority of the cast is usually top notch.
2954707
I really, really wanted to enjoy this movie. Techno Warriors has been on my watch list for years, and I anticipated fun things from its great cast and unique look. However, what I got was pure mediocrity, even though the film gave itself ample opportunities for redemption. While the most casual viewer may yet have fun with this, I cant recommend it to anyone other than hardcore fans of the involved parties.

The story: In a digitally-dominated future, fantasy becomes reality as the characters of a fighting game attempt to draw an expert player (Nino Muhlbach,&nbsp;<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/The-Boy-God/dp/B001NTPYSA/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">The Boy God</a>) into the digital realm to gain supremacy of their world.

The first thing I find fault with is the plot. The film opens with an entirely different conflict than what's described above, wherein individuals who can't operate computers are criminalized by cyber police. This is a world I would love to explore, but the storylines convolution limits my interest in its characters. Complex relationships between vaguely-defined characters fail to intrigue at all, and oddly, nobody seems particularly surprised at video game characters taking physical form and fighting people. The story provides no precedent for its weirdness, and this disengaged me from my viewing experience.

The excellent fighting cast includes Monsour Del Rosario (<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Bloodfist-II/dp/6305824703/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Bloodfist II</a>), Tamara Guo (<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Women-on-the-Run/dp/B0000DJF4B/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Women on the Run</a>), Winston Ellis (<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Black-Mask/dp/B00005OOQ1/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Black Mask</a>), Phillip Ko (<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Eastern-Heroes/dp/6304239599/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Eastern Heroes</a>), and Darren Shahlavi in one of his final Hong Kong roles prior to&nbsp;<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Ip-Man-2/dp/B004I1AGTC/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Ip Man 2</a>. While all of these performers look great in their flashy costumes, their opportunities to perform dramatically are limited and their opportunities to fight are sabotaged by very disagreeable styles of choreography and editing. The latter is the bigger problem, as the brawls are presented too rapidly for the viewer to fully appreciate. Aside from a noticeable reliance on kicking over punching and a little too much wirework for my taste, its difficult to find one brawl out of the 20 that is not frequently interrupted by the characters hurling animated projectiles at each other.

Stylistically, the film is a cross between&nbsp;<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Mortal-Kombat/dp/0790729997/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Mortal Kombat</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Power-Rangers/dp/B008XRE81E/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Power Rangers</a>, but its presented in a manner that fails to make the most out of its premise. What we're left with is an overload of information and visual stimuli: there's just too much that you're expected to follow. What a chore this was to watch!