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Book Review: Agatha Raisin and the Haunted House by M. C. Beaton (2003)

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Synopsis: After experiencing back-to-back heartbreaks, Agatha Raisin is determined to avoid any sort of relationship with her new neighbor, Paul Chatterton. However, when Paul convinces her to investigate a reported haunted house, she readily accepts and soon finds herself falling for him - only to learn he is married. Any hopes of cutting Paul off completely is then dashed when Mrs. Witherspoon, the owner of the haunted home, dies under mysterious circumstances and Agatha finds herself involved in yet another murder investigation. Review: After taking a short break from Agatha Raisin mysteries, I checked Agatha Raisin and the Haunted House out from my local library and gave it a shot. While my opinion of the oft-heartbroken detective has remained mixed, I have enjoyed some of the more recent books more than the earlier ones. Unfortunately, this one proved to be more of a step backwards. There were things about the book I did like. For one, I was much more intrigued by Agatha's ...
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My Five Favorite John Candy Movies

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I just learned today is the 32nd anniversary of us losing comedy legend John Candy (I honestly didn't realize it had been that long). He was a comedian I grew up watching and one of those actors who could steal the spotlight even in a minor role. So, to honor his memory, here are my five favorite John Candy movies. Planes, Trains and Automobiles (1987) When someone mentions Candy, this is always the first movie that comes to mind. His Del Griffith character is funny, especially when paired up with Steve Martin 's Neal Page, but also manages to have a few surprises up his sleeve throughout the film as well. Spaceballs (1987) There are a ton of memorable characters in this Mel Brooks film, and I can't wait to see them in the long-awaited sequel, but Candy's half human/half dog character Barf is the one that arguably kicks this up a notch, whether it's from his various one-liners or the physical comedy. National Lampoon's Vacation (1983) Candy isn't the star o...
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My Thoughts - The Traitors, Season 2

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My wife and I enjoyed the first season of The Traitors enough to give the second season a try and, after finishing it in record time, here are some of my thoughts: I am just not a fan of the whole reality star thing. For one, I think there is an assumption everyone watching this show watches a lot of other reality shows and I certainly don't fall in that category. As a result, it felt as though I was expected to know who the contestants were in advance.  On top of it, the fact they divided into fractions based on their show/network did kind of ruin this season for me a bit and made me question if their established friendships/working relationships also meant they were revealing their identity as a Faithful/Traitor off camera.  At minimum, there were quite a few put on the hot seat because of what they did on other shows. That felt like an unnecessary cheat, especially when one of the guesses based almost solely on that was correct. On the flip side, there were too many not on...
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Movie Review: Phantom of the Opera (1943)

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Synopsis: A recently disfigured ex-violinist is wanted for murder and "haunts" a Paris opera house while taking extreme measures to help a young singer he has become obsessed with. Who's in it? The movie stars Claude Rains , Susanna Foster, Edgar Barrier , Nelson Eddy and Jane Farrar. Review: I recently watched another movie that had Claude Rains in it and thought to myself "it's been ages since I watched Phantom of the Opera ." So, when I had some free time early this morning before heading into the office, I decided to give it a re-watch.  The movie is as good as I remembered. For the record, I do still prefer the 1925 Lon Chaney silent film version slightly more because Chaney's version of the Phantom was quite a bit creepier. However, this movie is a very close second. A big part of the reason for this is Rains' overall performance, creating a Phantom character that was about as unlikeable as you could make a movie villain. He murdered people,...
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Movie Review: Critic's Choice (1963)

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Synopsis: The bored wife of a successful theater critic decides to write her own play. She is able to get it produced but a drunken, negative review written by her husband threatens both the show's success and their marriage. Who's in it? The movie stars  Bob Hope , Lucille Ball , Marilyn Maxwell , Jim Backus and Rip Torn . Review: I am taking a bit of a lazy day today and, while my wife and youngest daughter were attending a play at our local high school, I ended up searching for a movie to watch. It had been a while since I last saw Critic's Choice and since it was available, I decided to give it a re-watch. My opinion of it was basically the same one I had the first time I watched it, it was OK but not as good as I had expected. I'll start out by saying the film's premise was a good one, mostly because it created a no-win scenario for the critic, Parker Ballentine (Hope). It was clear he didn't want to review his wife, Angela's (Ball) play because, base...
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My Thoughts - Season 1 of The Traitors

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As I've said before, I rarely watch a television series until I know it is going to last more than a season. Life it too short to get invested in something that is going to get cancelled. As a result of that, we had not watched The Traitors  until very recently, when we finally got caught up on all the past seasons of Project Runway. I haven't quite finished the first season of the reality series, which features a group of contestants staying in a Scottish manor and competing to earn money while trying to figure out which three are "murdering" a contestant per night. So, please, no spoilers. However, I do have some thoughts to share: The contestants sometimes take this a bit too seriously. I'm not talking about being overly competitive. This is, after all, a game with money at stake. I do think they sometimes forget it is a game though, whether it is guilt over "murdering" a contestant, almost to the point you would think they actually died, or getting o...
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Movie Review: Arachnoquake (2012)

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Synopsis: A fracking operation near New Orleans causes a series of earthquakes that release giant, fire-breathing spiders on the city and leave residents in terror as they attempt to escape before being eaten. Who's in it? The movie stars Megan Adelle, Gralen Bryant Banks, Tracey Gold, Edward Furlong and Grant James. Review: I watch a lot of horror movies and, as part of that, have watched more than my share of bad horror films, especially those that were made for TV. However, every once in a while, I'll come across a film that is so terrible, I wind up wondering if some of my brain cells exploded from watching it. The film Arachnoquake is one of those movies. To be fair, I probably should have expected as much from the title. In my defense, however, I have seen a similar film, Lavalantula , that turned out to be surprisingly good so, based on that, I was willing to give this movie a shot this morning. Too bad the film didn't hold up its end. My biggest problem with thi...
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