Steven Helmer Publications

Synopsis : Famed Belgium detective Hercule Poirot hunts down a London serial killer that selects his/her victims according to their intials. However, he must also avoid being apprehended by the local police, who don't want his help and want him to leave the country. Who's in it? The movie stars Tony Randall , Robert Morley , Anita Ekberg , Maurice Denham and Sheila Allen. Review: I came across this movie the other day and, after enjoying the Miss Marple films I've seen recently, decided to give a Hercule Poirot mystery a try as well. After all, he is my favorite Agatha Christie detective. I had a chance to watch the film yesterday evening and, unfortunately, it just wasn't as good as I was hoping it would be. To be fair, the mystery itself wasn't too terrible. It has been more than three years since I read the book that inspired this film and, even though I kind of remembered the ending, the film had just enough going on to make me wonder if I was right about t...

Synopsis: Teenager Christina Tarling is trying to adjust to life in the new home she shares with her father and younger brother but strange noises and occurrences have her worried she is suffering from the same mental illness that resulted in her mom being committed to a nearby facility. Things get worse when the body of one of her classmates is found on the property and her best friend goes missing. Who's in it? The movie stars Allison Lange , John Savage , Brendan Fehr , Brad Rowe and Lorne Stewart. Review: I came across this movie a few days ago and, thinking it sounded somewhat interesting (albeit not overly unique) ended up adding it to my library. My wife and I had time to watch it last night and, after seeing it, I thought the movie was better than expected. I think the thing that really stood out for me about this film was it wasn't as easy to figure out who the bad guy was as I thought it would be. My wife ultimately had the correct guess but, even then, there were...

Synopsis: When former actress Margaret McGinty is murdered, her lodger, Harold Taylor appears to be guilty. However, Jane Marple is on the jury and, by being the lone holdout, causes a mistrial. Believing Taylor is innocent, Marple decides to investigate the murder herself and puts her life in danger by joining a theater company so she can search for the person she believes McGinty was blackmailing. Who's in it? The movie stars Margaret Rutherford , Ron Moody , Charles 'Bud' Tingwell , Ralph Michael and Francesca Annis . Review: I've had this movie in my library for a couple of weeks and, after enjoying both Murder Ahoy and Murder, She Said , decided to take the time to watch it. Overall, I have to say the film proved to be worth my time. Once again, while I'm not a fan of the literary version of Miss Marple, I do find the film version much more enjoyable. Part of this was because of Rutherford's outstanding performance, which had just the right mix of serio...

Synopsis: While excelling at his military training in Spain, Don Diego Vega is unexpectedly summoned home to California by his aristocrat father. When he arrives, he learns his home has come under the control of a tyrant. With the landowners, including his father, refusing to stand up for the peasants, Diego disquises himself as a masked outlaw named El Zorro in an effort to terrorize the alcalde into resignation while, at the same time, wooing the alcalde's niece. Who's in it? The movie stars Tyrone Power , Linda Darnell , Basil Rathbone , Eugene Pallette and J. Edward Bromberg. Review: I was happy to come across this film on one of my movie channels because it is one of my favorites and I hadn't seen it in a long time. I had a chance to watch it again yesterday and, as has been the case the previous times, it did not disappoint. There have been various incarnations of Zorro, including some more recent ones, but I still think Tyrone Power pulls off the role the best. Hi...

Synopsis: By the 1940s, Hedy Lamarr was a successful actress in Hollywood, known for her beauty. In her spare time, however, she was an inventor. When World War II broke out, Hedy, along with composer George Antheil, teamed up to invent a weapon that could be used against the Nazis and, instead, invented a technology that is still being used today. Review: I came across this book while walking through the stacks at my local library and, since I am a big fan of Hedy Lamarr and knew a little bit about her inventing hobby, decided to check it out. It turned out to be an interesting read. The book gives a fairly detailed account about both Lamarr and Antheil's lives before their paths crossed and they became a team. It also gives a great deal of detail about their invention (a radio-controlled torpedo that couldn't have its signal jammed), the difficulty they faced getting it approved by the military and how the technology wound up being used with various other inventions, includ...

Synopsis: Miss Jane Marple joins the board of trustees for the HMS Battledore, a ship that is being used to rehabilitate young criminals. Shortly after, one of the other trustees dies in front of her after visiting the ship. Suspecting he has been poisoned over something he discovered, Miss Marple decides to visit the ship herself. Who's in it? The movie stars Margaret Rutherford , Lionel Jeffries , Charles 'Bud' Tingwell , Joan Benham and Stringer Davis . Review: I discovered recently I'm not a huge fan of Agatha Christie's Miss Marple books. However, after enjoying the film Murder, She Said , I decided to give some more of the movies a try. I finally had a chance to watch this one and, overall, thought it was an entertaining film. I think the thing I liked best about this film was the way it managed to put Miss Marple (Rutherford) smack dab in the middle of a murder investigation while, at the same time, keeping the overall mood of the movie lighthearted. I es...

Synopsis : In 2012, a lone gunman opened fire inside a Sihk temple near Milwaukee and killed, among others, Pardeep Kaleka's father. Two months after the tragedy, Pardeep arranged to meet with Arno Michaelis in the hopes the former white supremacist would be able to give him answers. The meeting went better than both expected and ultimately resulted in them forming a partnership. This non-fiction book tells their stories. Review: I came across this book pretty much at random while at the library a few days ago. At first, I didn't know if it would be something I would enjoy reading but, since my book pile was relatively small, I decided to give it a try. It ended up being much better than I was expecting. I think the thing I found I enjoyed most about this book was the way one of the authors was able to give the reader a very raw look into the mind of a white supremacist. The memoir was very detailed, offering a good insight into the types of things that cause a person to take ...

Synopsis: A singer, Hazel, and two bumbling magicians, Peter and Harvey, are arrested while performing in the Middle East and regain their freedom by agreeing to help a usurped prince regain his throne from his uncle. When their plan fails, Peter and Harvey must rescue Hazel before the uncle makes her one of his wives. Who's in it? The movie stars Bud Abbott , Lou Costello , Marilyn Maxwell , John Conte and Douglass Dumbrille. Review: This was one of the few Abbott & Costello movies I had yet to see so, when I came across it on one of my movie channels, I made sure to record it. I had a chance to watch it this weekend and, unfortunately, it wasn't as good as I was hoping it would be. Don't get me wrong, the comedy team was at its best when performing some of their classic bits, including their magic show early on in the film. I think my biggest problem with the movie was it just didn't feel like a movie. The story about Hazel (Maxwell) trying to help a prince by...

Synopsis: Seven years after monsters wiped out 95 percent of the human population and forced survivors underground, Joel has reconnected with his girlfriend, Aimee, via radio. Still in love with Aimee and feeling his colony doesn't need him, Joel decides to make the 85-mile journey to her colony despite having no survival skills. Who's in it? The movie stars Dylan O'Brien , Jessica Henwick , Michael Rooker , Ariana Greenblatt and Dan Ewing. Review: I came across this movie a few weeks ago and, even though I had never heard of it before, thought it sounded interesting enough to add to our movie library. My wife and I finally had a chance to watch it yesterday afternoon and I have to say the film exceeded my expectations. My first thought was this movie reminded me a lot of the film Zombieland (one of my favorites) with giant monsters instead of zombies. However, as the film progressed, there were enough unique and entertaining things that made it enjoyable even without t...

Synopsis: When a corporation wants to bottle water from a popular local spring, Agatha Raisin , still trying to get her neighbor, James, out of her mind, accepts a freelance job getting the local residents on board. When one of the people opposing the company is found murdered, she tries to focus on her job and stay away from another amateur investigation but changes her mind when James decides to investigate it himself. Review: I was a little hesitant to check out another Agatha Raisin book because they haven't been as good as I was hoping lately. However, I decided to give it one more try. Unfortunately, this one didn't convince me I shouldn't take a break. It's not that I don't like M. C. Beaton's books, I am just finding it harder to care about Agatha Raisin with every new book and this book didn't change that. The mystery itself was OK, though it wasn't overly difficult to figure out who the killer was (there was really only one person who had the...

We decided to finally check this out for my daughter's 17th birthday. It turned out to be an entertaining day with lots of animals, including some you are allowed to feed and pet (not counting the petting zoo) and the kids had a lot of fun. It is a lot of walking (unless you rent a golf cart) so I do recommend bringing water and a snack with you.