As a huge fan of just about every member of this extremely talented cast, I went in to this movie really wanting to love it.

But what I found was a movie that was a victim of its own message. One of the storylines is about a one hit wonder that replaces one word of his song to "Christmas" and suddenly, he is selling billions of records, capitolizing on consumerism and people's lack of imagination. And that is what this movie is.

It throws every single cliche, every single Hollywood romance Christmas cookie cutter blockbuster formula at you. And there are so many storylines that you never get to know the characters. There are so many typical "Hollywood Moments" that somehow you miss the heart. They had to throw in some random nudity to keep the guys from gagging. A powerful politician who loves the overweight girl to keep us women feeling good about ourselves. A romance in Italy where the guy just barely catches the plane to get back into her arms complete with obligatory running up the dark street while music swells in the background. A child as he discovers young love and also does the "plane run". Lots and lots and lots of cliches. Lots of music swelling. Lots of people running towards each other from across a crowded room. Towards the end, it just pushed one button too many and I found myself rolling my eyes.

So it is a good film to just see a few nice moments with your favorite actors. But I left this film feeling ripped off and like Hollywood had just stollen two hours from my life that I would never get back again. I might spend $4.00 to see it once, but I would not recommend buying this film. Borrow it from your local library and spend your money elsewhere.

This book changed my life and expanded my world. Not just a great piece of literature, I believe this book will help to heal a world of children who will soon be wondering, "Why?" Lyrical, poetic, and filled with heart, heartbreak and hope, this is one of the best books I have ever read. I also highly recommend "Wild Swans" to everyone.

This book is a fine example of how truth is stranger than fiction. You could not make this stuff up. And yet, people lived this story and survived to tell the tale. Absolutely riveting. If you enjoyed "Into Thin Air", you will be spellbound by this true story. This book comes up time and again in dinner conversation. My entire family read it, passing the book from one person to the next. What is even more interesting is that there are artifacts that have survived. Films and pictures. Much like the Everest disaster, you can see a different generations version of the IMAX. Absolutely amazing!

I really wanted to like this book. The topic was fascinating to me. It seemed like such an interesting premise.

I was sorely disappointed.

Sophmoric at best relying upon shock value to attempt at keeping you hooked. This book is graphically violent. They don't warn you about that on the cover. If you aren't a fan of war films, I would say, this probably isn't the book for you. I am ten pages from the end and can't even force myself to pick it up to finish it.

What finally pushed me over the edge was how one of the main characters escapes from a heavily guarded warehouse where all the other prisoners are being beheaded and dropped into a pit and burned, but he is able to get away because a lone guard sees that he is lame and decides to rape him so he takes him out back and the main character fights him and runs away to end up in another warehouse that his family is trapped in...

Horrifying. Except that it happened to about twelve other characters already.

When the story goes into the flashbacks and the characters tell their stories and legends, this book is beautiful and captivating. I could have spent three hundred pages enraptured in these stories.

But the author keeps going back to the war and it is just shock shock shock to the point of absurdity. The number of ridiculous escapes and the way everything is twisted to try and bring us, as readers, to the height of the traaaagedy. I know this is a fictional book. But the author pushes the limits of reality so that what could have been very powerful just resulted in me rolling my eyes and muttering to myself, "Great. Another rape. And yet SOMEHOW the character escapes from their heavily guarded prison past soldiers with machine guns who are going to mow them down on the spot except the main character is able to pass as an enemy soldier due to their tricky cunning. AGAIN."

I always swear that I'll just watch one episode... six hours later, I'll have sat through the entire series and am begging for more. Beautifully shot. Unbelievable acting.

One word of advice, buy the VHS as opposed to the DVD. I own both and they messed up the lighting in the transfer to DVD. Dimly lit rooms suddenly are blazing with light on the DVD, and not in a good way. Subtle shadows are gone. Colors are washed out. It makes a huge difference.

I wanted to like this book. It sounded fascinating. It could have been great.

Instead, it ended up being in increasingly dull romance novel. If I wanted that, I would have gotten something from the grocerystore bookshelf.

Instead of a storyline or a sense of the rich history of Palestine, it resorts to graphic sex to keep the readers attention. And not even THAT kept my attention. I actually found myself groaning and saying, "Not again" and trying to flip passed it all. That was all there was to these characters. Copulating in various places that they "shouldn't". I would put the book down and the next night pick it up to read and not even remember what it was about. I finally gave up. That's $$$ I'll never get back...

Let me first state, I love Evanovich. I haunted my public library every day for WEEKS waiting to get my hands on Hard Eight. I stay up till 4am curled in the blankets devouring the pages. Broker than broke, I chose to purchase Evanovich over groceries for the week.

And so when Visions came out, I was ready to love it.

Really.

And it was okay...

Yah know...

Okay...

Better than Full House. But that might just be because I am in love with Stephanie's hamster. But there was no sizzle. No heat. Only a few laugh out loud moments, okay, so evil elves crashing through plate glass in cookie enduced rage was funny, but I am usually heartily gafawing through any Stephanie Plum book... I REALLY REALLY wanted to like this one, but Sandy Claws? People popping in and out? Warm fuzzies about the meaning of Christmas? I dunno... I'm going back to the Numbers... And Janet? Ditch the chick you are co-writing the Full books with and get back to your brilliance. She's bringing you down, man.

Beautifully done! Gorgeous to watch! Almost as much fun for adults to watch as it is for the kids!