The Phantom Tollbooth

I watched The Phantom Tollbooth yesterday. I taped it when it was on TCM. It is based on a book by Norton Juster. (I haven’t read the book, but I did see a children’s play.) The movie was director and written by Chuck Jones (love him). It has Butch Patrick, Mel Blanc (love him), Daws Butler, Candy Candido, Hans Conried, June Foray, Patti Gilbert, Cliff Norton, Larry Thor, and Les Tremayne.

In this movie, a boy named Milo is bored. He is talking to his friend on the phone and discovers a huge box appears. The box has a tollbooth inside it. Milo gets in a toy car. He has in mind that he wants to go to the Castle in the Air (wikipedia says in the book he wants to go to Dictionopolis). He later meets a watch dog who becomes his companion. He goes to Dictionopolis and a fight between a bee and an insect. Milo and the dog is thrown in prison where he meets Which who tells them about the princesses in the Castle in the Air. Milo decides to free them. So he tells the king of Dictionopolis and he agrees to let them go with Humbug, the insect who had a fight with the bee. They go to Digitopolis where numbers rule. The king of Digitopolis refuses to let Milo free the princesses. But Milo tells him that he and his brother do agree to disagree. So the king of Digitopolis lets them free the princesses. They do and the princesses changes the kingdom back to the way it was before. Then Milo leaves and appears in his house. The big box floats away to his friend’s house.

I did like this movie. Next week I’m watching Peter Pan (the 2003 version).

The Secret Adversary

I finished reading The Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie. It is the first book in the Tommy and Tuppence book series. There are five books in the book series. Like I said earlier, I’m reading this book because of a new show on Ovation network called Agatha Christie’s Partners in Crime.

Big Warning: there is a little bit of violence.

In this book, Tommy and Tuppence want to be adventurers.  They put out an announcement. Tuppence gets an offer by a man named Mr. Whittington. He wants her to go to Paris. When asked for her name, she gives a fake name (of a real girl) Jane Finn. Jane Finn was a girl who was on a boat which was sinking. A man standing next to her hands her some important documents because women and children are off the boat first. Jane Finn goes missing. Mr. Whittington was wanting to use Tuppence as a fake Jane Finn. When Tuppence uses that name, Mr. Whittington pays her off. Then Tommy and Tuppence meets a man who is a secret agent who tells them about who Jane Finn is and about the important. He hires them to find Jane Finn. Then they meet a cousin of Jane Finn who wants to find her too. They do eventually find Jane Finn and find the important documents.

The difference between the show and book:

1. Jane Finn is on a train on the show and not on a boat like the book.
2. Tommy and Tuppence aren’t married in the book. Tommy does ask Tuppence get married in the Partners in Crime book (the short stories book).
3. Tommy and Tuppence doesn’t have a kid in this book.
4. Albert is a shoe shine boy that lives near Rita in the book. In the show, he is teacher and Tommy’s friend.
5. Mr. Carter is not related to Tommy in the book.
6. Julius is Jane’s cousin in the book and he does proposed to her. In the book, Julius has much bigger part in the book. He helps Jane and Tuppence escape. I think he is much younger in the book and he’s not black.
7. The house in Solo is not a peep show place. It was actually a meeting place with many important people.
8. Mr. Brown wasn’t an assassin in the book.
9. Rita isn’t an opera singer in the book. Tuppence, Peel, and Julius witness the murder of Rita. She wasn’t hanged.
10. Jane faked being Annette in the book. Jane had documents in the book and not a tape recording as in the show.
11. Tommy doesn’t owns bees in the book and I think he was a secret agent in the book.

I did like the book better than the first part of the show. Now I’m reading N, or M? by Agatha Christie. It is the third book of the Tommy and Tuppence book series and the second part of the Agaths Christie’s Partners in Crime show.

Kingsman: THe Golden Circle

I watched Kingsman: The Golden Circle yesterday. I taped it when it was on HBO. It has Taron Egerton, Edward Holcroft, Mark Strong, Hanna Alström, Julianne Moore, Colin Firth. Halle Berry, and Pedro Pascal in it.

Big Warning: there is one sex scene and a little bit of violence.

In this movie, Poppy makes her demands that she has released a “blue rash” within her drugs which leads to death. She has an antidote and she will release the antidote if the president will make drugs legal and tax the drugs. The president though is willing to let everyone die. Meanwhile Eggsy thinks of a way to get Harry to remember who he is with a puppy. Harry does remember, but he has some issues. While tracking down the antidote, Harry says that Whiskey is not fighting with them. Eggsy thinks Harry is having issues again, but later it turns out Harry was right. In the end, they release the antidote and Eggsy marries the princess.

I did like this movie. They say there will be a third movie. Next week I’m watching The Phantom Tollbooth.

Partners in Crime

I finished reading Partners in Crime by Agatha Christie.  This is the second book of the Tommy and Tuppence book series. There are five books in the book series.

Note: I wanted to read this book because Ovation network has a new show called Agatha Christie’s Partners in Crime. I thought the show would be based on the book, but it’s based on this book, but two other books in the series which I am going to read.

This book is a short stories book. In this book,  Tommy and Tuppence take over the Brunt Detective Agency. Since no one knows who the real Mr. Blunt is, Tommy becomes Mr. Blunt. They solve some interesting crimes. One was of a missing pearl, one was solving alibi issue (which I solved before they did), a switching of a suitcase, etc.

I love this book. Next I’m reading The Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie. It is the first book in the Tommy and Tuppence book series. 

Focus

I watched Focus yesterday. I taped it when it was on TNT. It has Will Smith (love him), Margot Robbie, Adrian Martinez, Rodrigo Santoro, BD Wong, Robert Taylor, and Dominic Fumusa in it.

Big Warning: there is a little bit of violence.

In this movie, a man named Nicky is a con man. He meets a woman named Jess who is doing a con too. He decides to teach her what tricks he knows and they fall in love. But then Nicky suddenly breaks up with her. Three years later he is doing a con with a racing car owner. One slight problem Jess is “dating” the racing car owner. When the con is revealed, Jess admits that she wasn’t really dating the owner. She was running a con herself trying to get his watch.

I loved this movie. Next week I’m watching Kingsman: The Golden Circle.

The Romanov Prophecy

I finished listening to The Romanov Prophecy by Steve Berry. It is another stand alone book. In the Cotton Malone book series there are seventeen books so far.

Warning: there is a lot of violence.

In this book, a man named Miles Lord is lawyer. He is in Russia looking to info that will be bad for the new czar of Russia. His co-worker on this job is gunned down in front of him. He runs for his life. He tells his boss about it. Unknown to him, his boss is behind the hit which was meant for Miles. His boss “works” for a committee that is trying to get a man to become the new czar of Russia. Miles does find info that would hurt the czar candidate. He finds info that two of the Imperial children had survived the massacre. While running for his life, Miles runs into a woman who ends up helping him in a quest to find the Imperial’s descendants.  They do find a descendant.

I did like this book. Next I’m reading Partners in Crime by Agatha Christie.

The Wolf of Wall Street

I watched The Wolf of Wall Street yesterday. I taped it when it was on FX. It is based on a book by Jordan Belfort. It has Leonardo DiCaprio, Jonah Hill, Margot Robbie, Matthew McConaughey, Kyle Chandler, Rob Reiner, Joanna Lumley, and Jon Favreau in it.

Warning: there are some sex scenes and a little bit of violence.

In this movie, Jordan Belfort tells his story of how he made it “big” as a stockbroker. He ended up going to prison for fraud for 22 months.

I sorta liked the movie. Next week I’m watching Focus.

The month of August

Happy August!!

The new Twilight book is coming out tomorrow. Overdrive says the pre-release is August 8th. I have it on my holds. I’m a little excited about it. I had read the leak that came out many years ago thinking that she wouldn’t publish it. Now she has published it. I have been re-watching some of the movies to celebrate.

Nothing much else is happening.

The Amber Room

I finished listening to The Amber Room by Steve Berry. It is a stand-alone book. I think it is his first published book.

Big Warning: there is a rape scene and talks of torture.

In this book, a judge named Rachel  has a father who survived WWII. Her father is obsessed with the amber room (panels made of carved amber). A man named Christian and a woman named Susanne are treasure hunters for two rich families. They steal art and other things that were already stolen. They are looking for the amber room. Although Susanne knows where the amber room is. Christian visits Rachel’s father and discovers nothing so he kills Rachel’s father.  In the end, they all know where the amber room is.

The Amber Room is a real thing. Here’s info on it: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amber_Room

I sorta liked this book. I would love to see the amber room. Now I’m listening to The Romanov Prophecy by Steve Berry.