The qualities of "Goldmember"
347593
The Good:
-The funniest movie I've ever seen
-Still the champ of funky spy-hard action
The bad:
-Makes you explode after laughing too hard
The strange:
-What's up with these awkward characters(The mole man, etc.)
The awards for:
-Dumbmest character-Scott Evil
-Weirdest character-Goldmember
The overall:
-You want comedy, YOU GOT COMEDY RIGHT HERE!
171892
Tarnished Gold drew me in with both the elegant writing style and gripping plot. I don't feel the need to write a full synopsis here, so instead Ill discuss what I found interesting and unique about this book and what makes it a worthwhile read.

What I found striking about the story was the juxtaposition of the beauty of the artwork that is integral to the story (a stolen Drer watercolour) and the darker aspects of the plot, including murder and the grittiness of the city and its underworld.

While the protagonist Cantor Gold is a tough, streetwise woman, she also has a great appreciation for fine artwork. The story is set in 1950 and we see that she is a collector of the emerging artists of the era. I particularly liked Cantors musings on the Rothko painting that she had purchased legally, rather than stolen: About a year or so ago, this guy Rothko started painting fuzzy-edged rectangles and squares of different colors. They look like spaces I could crawl into, get lost inside a slot of brown or a chasm of green or a tunnel of black. (Chapter 5)

Tarnished Gold is written in the first person, present tense and I found that it fit the story well, giving it a very immediate and personal feel.

The setting of New York City is also vividly portrayed  from the elegant homes and apartments of the wealthy in the Upper East Side, to the descriptions of the newly urbanizing Queens, to the docklands and the diners.

New York in 1950, nearly two decades before Stonewall, was a complex world in which to be lesbian or gay. As Cantor thinks to herself, one could be arrested and spend the night in jail after a raid on a gay nightclub or even put in a psychiatric institution if caught in a sexual act.

Cantor Gold is such an interesting main character and one who is certainly not perfect. As an art thief, she lives a life of crime but manages to justify it, at least to herself.  Her reasoning for her illegal acts is that if the law sees her as a criminal just for being who she is (lesbian), are any other laws worth following?

The story also touches on the raw pain of Holocaust survivors and their families, as well as their personal strength, just five years after the end of World War II.

While Tarnished Gold is Ann Aptakers second book about Cantor Gold (following Criminal Gold), it can be read as a standalone novel without feeling like youve missed anything.

I think that readers who enjoy crime or mystery novels will appreciate Tarnished Golds well-crafted plot that features a protagonist with a different and unique take on life in New York City in 1950. For readers who enjoy lesbian fiction, Tarnished Gold stands out as an interesting mystery featuring a strong lesbian character, but without the focus on romance that is common in many lesbian novels.
1749904
The Christmas displays are out again and my grocery store had a small display of small mesh bags of Frankford Milk Chocolate Coins. I picked up a 1.5-ounce bag of  six good-sized gold coins. The gold was tightly wrapped about the milk chocolate center. Evidently, these bags come in various sizes and contain different mixes of coins. That's okay by me, I use them not as gifts but as little rewards for my four-year-old boy. When he's good or does something I approve of, I give him a gold coin. He loves his bright gold coins. He plays with them but can't open them as yet so I have to open them for him. So be it. The coins in this particular bag resemble silver dollar in size, perhaps a bit larger. The profile on the front resembles JFK. "Liberty" and "In God we trust" is in raised letters on the front as well as the year 2005. On the reverse side is a spread-winged Eagle and the lettered inscriptions 'United States of America" and "Half Dollar." It's a good coin replica but wouldn't fool anyone except a small kid. I find them to be a fun plaything with my boy.

Gary Peterson
3461751
Woman In Gold tells the true story of Maria Altmans journey to reclaim her familys stolen possessions that the Nazis took during WWII. Maria along with her lawyer fought a 10 year battle against the government of Austria to reclaim her familys property. The film focuses on the unlikely pairing of the two as she faces her past in order to right her familys name. Another unlikely pairing is that of Martin Phipps and Hans Zimmer, who have no prior history of working together. Some production scuffles resulted in the last-minute pairing of the two, which resulted in a short and mostly effective score.

The film is telling the story in present day, but of course we have flashbacks to WWII to fill in the history of Marias backstory. This ended up being a pretty easy split for the two composers. Phipps composed the music to accompany the main present day storyline, while Zimmer took the WWII era flashbacks. The result is a score that congeals quite well despite the two composers taking two separate thematic approaches. Zimmers waltzy piano theme makes that musical storyline standout quite nicely. It comes with a tinge of mystery and has that backstory feel. Phipps also uses a piano for his central motif for the main storyline, which is why the two really blend nicely. Phipps motif is a bit more of a trickling decent, there is a feel of gumption and hope in Phipps music that carries nicely all the way through. The score finishes on a reflective note with a great sense of personal closure. The piano gives way for strings that bring the emotion to the front for the listener to take in. Upon looking back at the score though as a whole, there does seem to be a deeper emotional oomph missing. The music at times feels more like a performance piece versus a score, and I think while its pretty to listen to there were times where more was needed.

Woman In Gold is a very decent score about a womans journey to reclaim her familys past. Phipps and Zimmer do a very sufficient job of providing the subtle emotional undertones to both journeys, past and present. The score itself nails the tone, but lacks an overall emotional cohesion. The approach while simple, feels a tad bit uninspired. The music is elegant and wonderfully structured, and comes to a wonderful resolution. However, in the end it felt like it needed something a little more to resonate better. Woman In Gold is definitely worth your time if only to hear Phipps and Zimmer working quite well in parallel while maintaining a level of delicate restraint.
3167665
As one reviewer mentioned, calling it gold is a stretch. More Dishwater Brown w/some glitter. The only time it will look like gold is if you have really thin wall and quite a bit of light shining on it.  Had hoped to use it with a translucent paint I use to give a 'candied' look.  However because of the required thickness of my model I couldn't do that and had to give it a solid gold coating first.
I will say that I have used miles of filament from 3D Solutech and have never had a problem printing, always consistent so that is why I gave it a 4 star rating.
4631737
Everything Goldfrapp does is different from the last thing.  That being said, there is an adjustment from one record to the next.  But after three listens, it will have it's hooks in you.
902912
The gold is a lovely, metallic gold. I was worried it would show up more of a greenish fakey gold, but nah, it's great.
The backing comes off in two pieces, which is a tad bit of a nuisance, but I suppose the upside to it is that it covers the entire back whereas the style I'm used to--while coming off in one piece, leaves the bottom edge exposed, allowing dirt to stick to it if you print labels ahead of time. Pros and cons, I guess.
Be advised that it is quite permanent. I was baaaaarely able to re-position a label I put on crooked, but I'm not sure I could have if I didn't do it right away. The kind I'm used to is quite re-positionable. But this isn't at all a deal breaker. I just need to be more careful, is all.
346534
This book is an absolute gold mine. I was impressed from the get-go at how the author was able to condense such a depth and breadth of information into such a readable form. A very worthwhile read.
3374363
This is the easy-reading autobiography of a gold prospector who worked in Australia, Africa, and North and South America during the 1970s and early 1980s. The author, who was unaware of his mental illness, writes so convincingly that I sometimes wondered whether he might have been dealing with real antagonists trying to steal the results of his significant mineral finds rather than avoiding imaginary political spies.  If you are interested in mining, prospecting, treasure hunting, travel, foreign cultures, or some possible symptoms of of mental illness, there will be something in this book for you.
2907561
Loved the characters of the trio searching for the gold. You can't help but want them to reach their goal and cringe when a spanner gets thrown into the works. A good read!
2807238
I have one of these and love it.  Would love to have a gold one like it.  Would that be perhaps available soon?
2797477
Good characterizations and attention to period details.
378748
This book is about the formative and early years of Lorgar on largely desert filled planet of Colchis. Also known as Aurelian, he becomes the Bearer of the Word, the Golden One and the supreme religious and political authority on the planet, overthrowing all other powers, before taking command of the Word Bearers. He and they take part in the Great Crusade and being the first to fall to the Powers of Chaos  the Old Faith of Colchis as he sees it  after being rebuffed and rejected by his father the Emperor of Mankind because has worshiped him as a God.

Gav Thorpe has, with this book, done a very good job in characterising Lorgar and showing the evolution of his personality as he discovers his powers and matures. Also good is the related and parallel changes in the relationship over time between Lorgar and the rather infamous and Khor Phaeron with the later starting as the master, then as the protector and surrogate father, then as the right-hand man.

The ways in which Lorgar, initially a defenceless child, is manipulated and put to use in Khor Phaerons interests leads to a warping (no pun intended!) of his personality. A related feature of Lorgars character is his delusional and mystical sides. He is, at times, nave, credulous and idealistic. The combination makes him into a dangerous and self-righteous fanatic who  rather desperately - needs to believe in a cause and/or a religion. It also makes him blinkered at times, with a tendency to believe only what he wants to believe and a somewhat selective memory. At times, the flaws of the character appear clearly, including his inability to see Khor Phaeron for what he really is.

A further feature of interest is the rivalry between Khor Phaeron and another of Lorgars early companions who genuinely loves him and sees Khor for the manipulative and unscrupulous creature that he is. The opposition between evil and good, self-interest and real generosity, unscrupulousness and loyalty is clearly displayed throughout the book till the end, until one of the two triumphs once and for all. Four strong stars.
2013583
This is a very engaging story. Very clever stuff let me tell you! It reads a bit like an a short American Isabella Allende novel. Not bad! Gold-Diggers?
941160
Dr. Lawrence Gold, a retired doctor, has written a medical thriller that rivals others of the same kind. A serial killer is murdering patients at Brier Hospital, and no motive is obvious. Even the murders are not recognized as such for awhile.
Granted, the writing is not as smooth as that of professional writers who have been at it for some time, but the plot and characterization more than make up for this. Dr. Gold strikes the perfect balance in characterizations, as there are no two-dimensional wooden characters, yet he avoids taxing the reader's attention span by including tedious back-stories on minor characters, as I've seen in other novels.
Dr. Gold also provides a good look at the politics of a hospital, including the interplay between some difficult personalities and this relates to the care given patients.
Overall, this is the nest medical thriller I've yet read, and this prompted me to buy all of Gold's subsequent books.
1900286
G&ouml;tterd&auml;mmerung composed by Mozart. One exquisitely crafted sentence after another, full of gem-like details and nothing wasted or extra. Plus a beautiful zeugma on page 5. I would hate to limit its appeal by classifying it as sci-fi.
3622853
Although this is not in high definition, once you get into the story, it's not an issue.  I would recommend this movie to many  who don't think about getting to know those older folks that we can't imagine had or have a vibrant life and experiences that would richly encourage and benefit those who get to know them.  There's a mine field of gold in many of them that is fascinating and enriching.