This film was torn apart by the critic's, but i love Jane Campion's films- so I wanted to see for myself. I loved it!

I won't go into the plot, as many other reviewer's have already done so, but I will tell you, the acting is superb! I didn't think Meg Ryan had it in her! Get this woman some heavier roles Hollywood! She was excellent. Mark Ruffalo plays against type as well, and does a wonderful job.

The movie is sexy & scary- and it isn't porn, like one reviewer mentioned. It's erotic. But beyond that, Campion's method of storytelling is virtually flawless. I love what she says in the dvd extra's about seventies film & how during that period the actor's relaxed into their roles & let the film tell the story, insted of letting the actor's point the way.

This film is ripe with sensuality, not to be confused with sexuality- the blooming garden, the petal storm, the relationship between the two sisters (Jennifer Jason Leigh is also brilliant in this film)- the apartment's the women inhabit...it does go on.

I was startled by how well done the film was done!

Highly recommended!!

It starts out slow, but it builds & builds, & by the time the house gets ahold of dear Eleanor, it's too late to go back! I was chilled upon finishing the novel.

Don't expect skeletons popping out of closets, and ghosties running rampant from page one- if you do, it will only lead you into dissappointment.

Jackson's writing is literary & quite concerned with character development & it has an old-fashioned horror story appeal.

The ending makes this short novel, retrospectively, all the more thrilling.

Recommended!

It's awfully nice to watch a well-crafted, interesting & engaging film that allows you to explore a world you know nothing about, teaches you about that world & never preaches. "Dirty Pretty Things," does this, & it's really quite marvelous to watch.

It's purely marketing that puts Audrey Tautou on the cover, scantily clad & looking a bit 'come hither.' This is not a sexy movie. It's gritty & suspenseful. I was impressed all around by the actor's various accents- great acting!

I certainly understand what's dirty in this film- black market organs, the sketchy world of illegal immigration, sweat shops & no sleep- but what's pretty? Miss Tautou? The lovely ending? Nice people trapped in a dirty world? Just pondering here...

Highly recommended!

It didn't feel like sloppy sentimentality to me, but it was gut wrenching to watch. Everything in her life (the Sarah Polley character) was depressing enough to begin with... janitor job, trailer park, dad in jail, hates her mom, husband with no job... & then she finds out she's dying, decides to keep it to herself & makes a list of all the things she wants to do before she dies... what a set up!

You can easily look at the list above & think 'overdone tearjerker,' but the cinematography is beautiful, it's edited so well, it has an amazing soundtrack & Sarah Polley, Mark Ruffalo & Scott Speedman give lovely performances.

I cried through almost the entire film & for a good half an hour after. I admit there were plot contriviances pushing in a bunch of directions ready to yank tears from dewy-eyed viewers like myself, but it was still a thought provoking look at life & Sarah Polley is a goddess.

I recommend this, but if you're a crier- be warned!

Tracy Flick wants to win her highschool presidential election, & she'll be beyond bothered if anyone else tries to get in her way. This amusing little book (large print, 200 pages) is told through the various perspectives of those caught up in the election & gives a humorous look at the lives of those affected.

I hate to say I liked the movie better than the book- but, I did.

While the book is charming & funny- the character's actually have less depth than they do in the movie- & the laugh's are much fewer. The book also lacks emotional resonance, whereas the movie actually gets you more riled up about the election & what happens to those involved.

It's a quick, easy read & it does provide some amusement- but I'm going to have to say, (and it pains me to do so) that you're better off watching the movie.

This book is scary! There aren't any ghosts (except of course the past)- or creepy crawly things, but just the idea/fact that a concerned mother can bring her child in for a medical diagnosis & have the tables turned on her so quickly. In the narrator's case, the doctor's think it is she who is making her daughter ill.

And from there begins the unravelling- a marriage, the past, a life so seemingly comfortable & steady. Not only is the book quite thrilling with suspense, (will they take her child away?) it is also a meditation on what happens to a family in crisis.

This book just misses the 5 star mark by a fizzled end- the carbonated excitement went flat, & the last few paragraphs fell victim to the authorial hand. It felt like the author wasn't quite sure how to end things, so she copped out with a lame sequence- which I won't reveal.

Aside from that, the book is wonderfully gripping & I highly recommend it!

There are 4 girl goddesses- each has her own power- invisibility, time jumping, reading minds & esp- it sounds cooler than it is.

I like to read teen-y books sometimes just to see what's going on out there, and this book had no emotional impact whatsoever. Sure, the girls are on the outside a bit, hiding their magic- but all of the cute boys still like them, & the evil they face is confused and muddled in description.

I admit, I'm guilty, these books are so easy to read that I'm going to go ahead & read some more of them- mostly to see if they get any better-

(...)

what a messy, mess, mess this book is!

there's a/are terrorist(s) on board a plane- but the reader is let in on the beginning that the terrorism isn't real- in fact there's some strange school where people are trained to act out fake terrorist attacks-- for what purpose? who knows.

oh, the narrator hints at this & that- the author lets us into the other passenger's minds briefly in these small interjected chapters- why? once again, who knows?

you really never know what the heck is going on- people die- but do they really? relationships take on a joking manner that only the author seems privvy to. oh my gosh! the only reason i finished the darn thing was due to a (wrong) belief that all of the confused nonsense would work itself out in the end.

do yourself a favor & don't bother with this book.

The House Sitter is the first novel I've read by Peter Lovesey, and I now look forward to reading more of his work.

There's no need to go into the plot (it's summed up already at the top of the page), but I should tell you that the writing is engaging enough to be a real page-turner & literary enough to escape the boring realm of genre mystery.

My guesses as to whom the killer might be were totally off, which is exactly what I want from a mystery; the character's(even bit players) had enough charm or creepiness to be more than one-dimensional, and there was just the right amount of humor- allowing the narrative to escape being bogged down by too much death.

Recommended!

I've read other fictional diaries, and this book puts the others to shame. It reads like an actual diary- full of insight, misguided intentions, lies, doodles & what reads as the real thoughts of a young girl- not the adult hindsight of what it was to be a teenage girl. Minnie feels so real it's hard to believe it's fiction! Kudos to Pheobe Gloeckner for accomplishing such a difficult task.

The drawings & comics are marvelous & I cannot wait to get my hands on the rest of her work.

The text is raw, engaging & harrowing. The disconnection between Minnie & the adults around her is tragically realistic. I felt emotionally connected to Minnie, as though she were a friend & not a fictional character.

Highly recommended!