Ataraxia

  Note on Leaving Las Vegas, written and directed by Mike Figgis, with Nic... | realini

  The Boy in the Stripped Pajamas, based on the novel by John Boyne 9 out of 10 This motion picture is an example of how different we can view art, books, films, for while some critics have been exultant, others have been just as moved, but at the other end of the scale...'an appalling, jaw dropping movie that will cause serious nightmares' Entertainment Weekly They probably know better,but this cinephile disagrees. This may not be Schindler's List, but it is a compelling, well acted, professionally directed feature that will stay in memory for a long time, if not forever. It deals with the holocaust and takes a look from a different angle, building up to a cataclysmic finale. Asa Butterfiled is wonderful, precocious in the leading role of Bruno, son of the Nazi commandant of a German concentration camp. Although, in the first place, as they move with the fascist official to the new position he has, the family has no idea of his assignment. It is a well keep secret, up to t...

  Harry Potter and The Philosopher Stone by J.K. Rowling is ranked 236 th on The Greatest Books of All time site, it is clearly an immense success, along with all the other parts of the franchise – only this one has more than 11.5 million ratings on Goodreads, except that for the purposes of this space (which belongs to me, more or less) Harry Potter One, and the rest of them, although I may take the trouble to put in a few lines for the rest of them as well, is a waste of time, even if I have to admit I can speak (in a way) only about the adaptations, which I saw when my daughter, Hannah, was a child and this was ‘a thing’, I wonder if she liked it – this should be ‘the whole review’, even if there is some more down there – you also find thousands of notes on books from The GOAT and other sites, and on films from The NYT 1,000 Best Movies Ever Made on my blog https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/09/do-you-have-any-feedback.html   6 out of 10   I have here a...

  American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis has been adapted for the big screen by the author of the original novel with Mary Harron and Guinevere Turner, or they are just credited in this way – nevertheless, this note will be more about American vs Orange Psycho, or American Psycho is now The Orange Psycho- the novel is one of The 1,000 Novels Everyone Must Read, except that I did not find on The Greatest Books of All Time site, and there must be glitch there, for they go all the way to 10,000 or more, and this must be at least in the first 5k, not a great favorite of mine though…speaking of that, you find thousands of notes on films and books from the aforementioned and other lists on my blog https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/09/do-you-have-any-feedback.html and my YouTube channel maybe one or two are worth it     8 out of 10   While both the book and the film are interesting, these lines will be more about how the American Psycho has metamorphosed in...

  Spencer by Steven Knight is an acclaimed motion picture, it was the 2022 Nominee for The Oscar for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role for Kristen Stewart, she was Spencer aka Princess Diana – notwithstanding the appreciation of the experts – it was also the nominee for The Critics Choice Award, and for other trophies – I was not thrilled by either the feature, or Ms. Stewart…indeed, she was impressive as a child in The Panic Room, later on in Seberg, but Love Lies Bleeding and Spencer have disappointed this cinephile – you find thousands of notes on films from The New York Times’ Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made and other sites on my blog https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/09/do-you-have-any-feedback.html   6 out of 10   I remember the time when we heard about the death of Lady Diana: we were on a trip on the mountains, in Predeal, somewhere near the center of my country, and we arrived near the top after quite a climb (for my wife and I, plus De...

  A History of The World in 6 Glasses by Tom Standage is an outstanding work, which was to be expected, seeing as the author has been – I am not sure if he still is – one of the editors of The Economist…I think he was in charge for the latest issue of The World in 2026, every year, they publish what they except to happen in the next, and I think they did not foresee the war against Iran, and the cataclysmic consequences, to grasp the size of the catastrophe, you could do no better than read The Economist – you have thousands of reviews on books recommended by this distinguished publication, also from The Greatest Books of All Timea and other pages on my blog https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/2025/09/do-you-have-any-feedback.html   9 out of 10   This is a fabulous work, which takes a creative look at history – by the way, one of the mesmerizing, hilarious luminaries of America, H.L. Mencken, said that ‘historians are failed novelists’ https://realinibarzoi.blogs...