DVD Review: The Hunt for Red October

The Hunt for Red October
based on the novel by Tom Clancy (DVD Hunt)

Based on the book of the same name written by Tom Clancy, this is a story about a Russian submarine with technology that makes it undetectable on radar. Marko Ramius — played by Sean Connery — is in command of this sub. Ramius kills a political officer on board the ship and replaces the orders from Russia with ones that he had written himself. He claims that they are being told to head to the American coast. Meanwhile, the Americans learn of the existence of this sub, that it’s coming their way and that it’s undetectable, but are told to sink it. Jack Ryan — a CIA analyst played by Alec Baldwin — comes up with a theory that Ramius is not attempting to start a nuclear war, but is instead trying to defect, while handing over the submarine in the process. In order to prove his theory he urges the American commander to make contact with Ramius. They find the ship, communicate through Morse code, and learn that is exactly Ramius’s plan, but then they must come up with a plan of their own to throw Russian intelligence off their scent.

 

All-in-all it was a well-made movie. Connery was fabulous, Baldwin did well, and it was a thrilling story.

 

(If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try other Jack Ryan books made into movies – some that we own are The Sum of All Fears, Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit or any of the seasons of the Jack Ryan TV series starring Jon Krasinsksi.)

 

(Also available in traditional print format.)

 

( Internet Movie Database entry for this film )

 

Recommended by Carrie R.
Bennett Martin Public Library — Public Service

 

Have you watched this one? What did you think? Did you find this review helpful?

New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide website. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide Blog individually over the course of the entire month. Click the tag for the reviewer's name to see more of this reviewer’s recommendations!

Book Review: The Heap by Sean Adams

The Heap

by Sean Adams (Adams)

 

The Heap turned out to be a thriller, though a weird one. It’s also a book about experimental sociology. A mega high-rise that housed a small city worth of people has collapsed and there’s a dig effort to rescue the radio DJ who is somehow still broadcasting from somewhere down in the rubble.

 

Between the chapters about the dig effort and the looming threat of violence (that I feel is worth mentioning because the cover sure doesn’t shout “thriller”), there are 2-3 page short stories about life in the building before the collapse. I expected to be annoyed by the interruptions, but I enjoyed every one of these glimpses into the society that developed inside the building. You could even read all of them in a row and have a nice experience apart from the main post-collapse storyline.

 

I recommend this book to readers who like a strong mix of food for thought and thrills.

[If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try John Henry Days or Apex Hides the Hurt both by Colson Whitehead.]

[ publisher’s official The Heap web page ] | [ official Sean Adams web page at the HarperCollins website ]

 

Recommended by Garren H.
Bennett Martin Public Library — Public Service

 

Have you read or listened to this one? What did you think? Did you find this review helpful?

New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide website. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide Blog individually over the course of the entire month. Click the tag for the reviewer's name to see more of this reviewer’s recommendations!

DVD Review: Mr. Right

Mr. Right
[DVD Mr.]

This was a fun oddball cross-over between rom-com and violent action. Anna Kendrick plays Martha, one of her stock “quirky”, neurotic young women, fresh off a break-up with her boyfriend and leery of getting involved with anyone new. Sam Rockwell plays Francis, the charming and equally quirky man she crosses paths with only to have them “click”, relationship-wise. They seem perfect for each other. But the “perfect” turns out to be flawed, when she discovers that he’s a former hit-man, now on the run from the bad guys who had hired him, and from his former “killing” trainer, who’s frustrated that Francis has left the business. He may only kill bad guys now, but that doesn’t mean violence and mayhem aren’t following him around.

Kendrick and Rothwell seem like an odd pairing, but they have good chemistry, and watching Martha evolve as a character from wishy-washy to “badass” was fascinating. Tim Roth provides great support as the former mentor of Francis, who’s also after him. And rapper RZA has a comic turn as “Shotgun Steve”, one of the bad guys’ “muscle”, who turns out to have a personality of his own. None of the “bad guys” really stood out, though.

The violence is fairly extreme, and the coarse language flies fast and heavy. But the snappy dialog is funny, and the relationship between Martha and Francis really made this film pay off in the end. Recommended, with warnings for violence and language.

[ If you enjoyed this, you may also enjoy Grosse Pointe Blank from 1997, similar in theme and tone.]

[ Internet Movie Database entry for this film ] | [ official Mr. Right web site ]

Recommended by Scott C.
Bennett Martin Public Library

Have you watched this one? What did you think? Did you find this review helpful?

New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide website. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide blog individually over the course of the entire month. Click the tag for the reviewer's name to see more of this reviewer’s recommendations!

DVD Review: The Hurricane Heist

The Hurricane Heist
[DVD Hurricane]

This film starts off with an action-packed flashback to Hurricane Andrew, and doesn’t let up on the action for more than a few moments from that point onward. Co-written by a team of writers, and directed by Rob Cohen (creator of the Fast & The Furious film series), this film is a caper wrapped in a disaster story.

Will (Toby Kebbell) and Breeze (Ryan Kwanten) are two brothers who lived through the trauma of Hurricane Andrew that killed their father back in 1992. Will has gone on to become a meteorologist, working in the field in a specially-designed vehicle to track and study storm cells. Breeze has become a mechanical engineer. when a new 2018 Hurricane “Tammy” threatens their hometown, Will is eager to study it, and Breeze is lackadaisical and willing to evacuate like the rest of the town’s populace. Meanwhile, Casey (Maggie Grace) is a federal officer working at the nearby Federal Mint facility that is responsible for shredding over $600,000,000 in old bills that have been gathered at the site — only the shredder has broken down.

Turns out…that’s part of a big-time heist scheme designed to allow a team of bad guys to come into the mint and steal the money under the cover of the town’s hurricane evacuation. Casey, who’s left the facility to get Breeze (as a contracted repairman) tumbles to the scheme and escapes the bad guys, then teams up with Will to try to figure out how to rescue Breeze (and the other mint staff) and foil the heist. All while one of the worst hurricanes in U.S. history is raging around them.

The acting is terrific across the board in this film. I wasn’t familiar at all with either of the actors playing the brothers, and knew Maggie Grace only from the TV series LOST. Ben Cross and Ralph Ineson, as two of the “bad guys” were both recognizable, but otherwise it was a cast of “unknowns”, which was refreshing.

The stunt-work and physical effects work were intensive, as was the CGI. For me the level of believability for The Hurricane Heist was pretty much nil, but that didn’t bother me — this was a film where you turn your logical brain off and just get carried along by the plot/action. It was a lot of fun.

I particularly enjoyed watching the special features on this disc. Among them, there are interviews with director Rob Cohen, who share some unflinchingly honest comments about the state of Hollywood movie-making today.

[ Internet Movie Database entry for this film ]

Recommended by Scott C.
Bennett Martin Public Library

Have you watched this one? What did you think? Did you find this review helpful?

New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide website. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide blog individually over the course of the entire month. Click the tag for the reviewer's name to see more of this reviewer’s recommendations!

I've Got You Under My Skin by Mary Higgins Clark

I’ve Got You Under My Skin
by Mary Higgins Clark [Clark]

Laurie Moran knows firsthand what it feels like to live without closure of a loved one’s murder. Five years ago, her husband was murdered in front of their then three-year-old son Timmy. Timmy still has nightmares about “Blue Eyes,” the only distinguishing feature of the killer. Laurie is haunted, not only by the questions of who and why but also the killer’s last words to Timmy, “Tell your mother she’s next, then it’s your turn.”

As producer of the new show Under Suspicion, Laurie examines murder cases which have gone cold. By getting viewpoints from friends and family of the victim, Laurie hopes that her show can bring new light to unsolved cases. The first episode is to feature Betsy Powell, who was killed 20 years ago after the graduation gala of her daughter and three friends. As details begin to emerge from each of the people who was in the house that night, Laurie learns that each of them had their own reasons for wanting Betsy dead.

Laurie hopes that Under Suspicion will not only capture audiences when it airs, but more importantly, bring the killer to justice. The show has already caught the attention of a pair of blue eyes…

Laurie Moran is a down to earth character that audiences will relate to. The authors do a good job balancing the heaviness of the cases with Laurie’s family life and coworkers, which bring lightness and humor to the book. The suspects are presented, and the reader is allowed to draw their own conclusions before the killer is revealed in an exciting conclusion. As the other books in this series feature the same main characters as I’ve Got You Under My Skin, readers who enjoy this title will certainly enjoy others in the series. Aside the novels that she has written with her daughter, Carol Higgins Clark, this is the first book that Mary Higgins Clark has co-authored.

[Note: Although this first entry is written only by Mary Higgins Clark, all subsequent volumes in the series are co-written by Clark and Alafair Burke.] [If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try The Burning Room, by Michael Connelly, A is for Alibi, by Sue Grafton or Desert Heat, by J.A. Jance.]

[ official “Under Suspicion” series page on the official Mary Higgins Clark web site ]

Recommended by Marie P.
Bennett Martin Public Library

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New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide website. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide blog individually over the course of the entire month. Click the tag for the reviewer's name to see more of this reviewers recommendations!

A Brewing Storm (and others) by Richard Castle

A Brewing Storm
by Richard Castle

Fans of the “Castle” TV series will remember that in the first episode author Richard Castle killed off his immensely popular book character, superspy Derrick Storm. Here are the three short stories that bring Storm out of hiding, allegedly written by Richard Castle. (Remember, Castle himself is a fictional character for the TV show, with Nathan Fillion the actor as the front man for this charade. We still don’t know who the actual author is of these stories.)
All three stories are available on Hoopla (streaming ebooks) or Overdrive (downloadable ebooks). Also available in book form in the omnibus “Ultimate Storm” through Inter-Library Loan.

In “A Brewing Storm” a Senator’s son is kidnapped. A well-written mystery with twists and turns, in addition to Storm’s signature witty asides. And this ends in a cliff-hanger.

The next book, “A Raging Storm” teams Storm with FBI agent April Showers as they hunt down an assassin and six billion dollars worth of gold bullion hidden by the KGB before the collapse of the USSR. Further layers are revealed in this mystery. Storm is witty, capable, and shows why he’s a superspy.

The third book in this trilogy, “A Bloody  Storm” has Storm and Showers teamed with Ghost CIA Operatives – those who’ve faked their own deaths and come out of hiding to participate in extremely dangerous and usually illegal CIA operations. They head into Asia where they encounter The Viper, the most dangerous of extremists, and they may possibly have a traitor in their midst.
All three short stories are well-written with interesting plots, good character development, and Storm’s wit makes you laugh out lou.

Recommended by Charlotte M.
Bennett Martin Public Library

Have you read this one? What did you think? Did you find this review helpful?

New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide website. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide blog individually over the course of the entire month. Click the tag for the reviewer's name to see more of this reviewers recommendations!

The Black Widow by Daniel Silva

The Black Widow
by Daniel Silva

After several years of considering a Daniel Silva title, the libraries’ Just Desserts mystery fiction discussion group finally discussed one of this suspense writer’s espionage novels this past month — The Black Widow — the 16th volume in Silva’s Gabriel Allon series.

For the most part, this novel can stand on its own, but it is very obviously part of a series, and I think that reading the preceding volumes would help a lot in understanding some of the recurring characters’ relationships and motives. Former assassin, Israeli spymaster Gabriel Allon (also a renowned art restorer), is next-in-line to become head of Israel’s espionage services. But first, he has one more major operation to supervise in the field. A jihadist mastermind in ISIS has been behind more than one recent terrorism attack in Europe, and the intelligence world believes he’s planning something even bigger, to lure the United States into a holy war in the Middle East. That terrorist mastermind, who goes by the name Saladin, has a track record of using disaffected single Arabic women as his pawns, so Gabriel Allon has recruited a woman he believes can infiltrate Saladin’s network and possibly bring him down.

This is both a character-drive and plot-driven novel. The characters and situations are all extremely well imagined and very realistic. The plot ranges from fast-paced and action-oriented to slow and methodical. In the fifth of the novel, when Saladin’s plans are put into action, the suspense and terror levels are very intense. Silva was writing this at the time of the Paris terror attack, and his novel felt as real as the events that did actually occur. I really enjoyed this novel, and highly recommend it.

[If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try the early works of Robert Ludlum, prior to his passing in 2001, particularly The Bourne Identity, The Bourne Supremacy and The Bourne Ultimatum.]

[ official The Black Widow page on the official Daniel Silva web site ]

Don't miss the May 2017 Just Desserts meeting -- it is our annual Series Share session. Participants are encouraged to read the first volume in ANY new mystery, thriller or suspense series that has started in the past 3 years, and share your thoughts on that series with the rest of the group! Join us at South Branch Library, May 25th, from 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Recommended by Scott C.
Bennett Martin Public Library

Have you read this one? What did you think? Did you find this review helpful?

New reviews appear every month on the Staff Recommendations page of the BookGuide website. You can visit that page to see them all, or watch them appear here in the BookGuide blog individually over the course of the entire month. Click the tag for the reviewer's name to see more of this reviewers recommendations!