Book Review: The Crownless King - by Kara Linaburg

Welcome, one and all!

Today I'm reviewing a very special book....and that's because is going to be published tomorrow! Eeeep! I'm so, so, so deeply excited for this! As the sequel to The Broken Prince, I've been waiting for this for over a year! Kara has made an incredible journey with self publishing, and I will continue to look forward to her books for years to come.

Ahem. Today is not about some strange date in the future, it's about tomorrow (yes, I understand that sounds so weird)! On to my review!

My guarantee: On ALL of my reviews there are NO spoilers unless I give you warning. This is spoiler free!

Note, this is the second book in a series, and therefore when reading it there will be spoilers to the first book, but in my review there are no spoilers for either.

Disclaimer: I got a free copy in exchange for an honest review. These opinions are my own.


The Crownless King - by Kara Linaburg:

Sabriel is the only lady in the Knights of Norcir, a group of Gifteds determined to overthrow the King of Sindaleer. She has known abandonment and loneliness her whole life and feels that her heart has hardened. On a scouting mission she has the option of killing a lad who would report them in an instance to the Guardians, a group that has sided with the King, but the idea of killing in cold blood is wrong to her. With so many people picking sides can she win the struggle of keeping her own mind and not be controlled or influenced?
Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult.
Characters: 10! Wowza, guys, so, these characters are amazing. I wanted more of all of them! I love the struggles each of them face (whoops, I sound so cruel saying that, but INTERNAL CONFLICT for the win!).
My favorite: 
Hands down, 100%, Sabriel. I really loved having her as the main character! She has had to harden herself through the years and even with that the other Knights are always making fun of her and trying to prove that she will betray them, which would've gotten on my nerves so much sooner if it was me. I also liked having a few familiar faces of characters from the previous book throughout the chapters in this book.
Words: 9. There were no bad words. The only thing I thought was kind of funny was that in this setting with a very medieval vibe characters would say "shut up" and "shut it". This is just such a modern usage, it felt a little jarring. If it had been the words "quiet!" or "silence!" it would have felt more natural. But I really love Kara's writing style. It is just so gorgeous, right away I am wrapped in the world building like a warm blanket.

"Glowbugs blinked and played in the velvet darkness. Like stars dancing in the field, they hovered in the tall glasses, their white light breaking through the night."

Content: 8. There is smoking, drinking, and some suggestive things (shown as bad). There was a time when one character randomly took off his shirt which just made me stop and say, "That was weird". This has wars and battles so there are deaths and violence, sometimes graphic, but shown as bad. One of the things I loved so much about this book was a death (sorry, I'm sounding cruel again, but it's not like that!) and how it was handled.

"What in the name of destiny are you talking about?"

Originality: 9. I know it's a popular world building element to give people powers in fantasy, but I really like the variety of the powers of the Gifteds. I've seen some of these before but I like the dynamics carried through. I liked her uses of these even better than the first book, and the plot twists really surprised me!
Good For: People who have experienced loss or loneliness. Fantasy lovers.
Age Range: This is young adult so the characters are older, but that might not matter to younger readers. I would say 13+ because of all the talk of war and torture but it depends on each individual person and their tolerance level.
Overall Score: 9!
Worth reading?: Yes! While I liked The Broken Prince, this book spoke to me on a deeper level. The story was so creative and I enjoyed it thoroughly. It broke my heart in a few places and sewed it up in a new way.

"Little flames danced above her and she played with the fire, forming glowing butterflies that flitted around her..."

Will I read again?: Yes! Especially because it has been so long since I read The Broken Prince I can see myself reading them again close together and enjoying it even more.

Bonus thoughts:

I now want all of you to experience Sabriel's story, so go read it!

Find on Goodreads HERE.

Thank you to Kara for giving me an eARC of this book to review! The opportunity was amazing. Make sure you go over to her blog HERE and congratulate her on this second book!

Thank you as well to my little sister for helping me type this out when I had other things to do. Secretaries are the best!

And thanks to all of you for reading! What is your favorite fantasy book?

MovieCritic

Book Review: Ships, Secrets, & Survivors - by Sarah Rodecker and Helena George

Ahoy, mates!

Today I am participating in the blog tour of Helena George and Sarah Rodecker's debut novel, the first in The Pirate Hunter Chronicles! For more details on this book check out the other spots on the blog tour HERE or HERE.

My guarantee: On ALL of my reviews there are NO spoilers unless I give you warning. This is spoiler free!

Disclaimer: I got a free copy in exchange for an honest review. These opinions are my own.


Ships, Secrets, & Survivors - by Sarah Rodecker and Helena George:

The Scaera Dumeda is a test for those wishing to become ambassadors for the Alliance. People sail from all over to get in. Princess Adima knows that she can do better for her country by being in it and is hopeful for entry to the tests. Ravin is on the run from his past, and when his name is called he knows something is terribly wrong. Both of them find themselves wrapped up in an adventure that leads to the sea with the Captain Jay Hill and his crew. Who is behind all of this, and is it too late to prove that they aren't murderers?
Genre: Swashbucker, Adventure, Fantasy.
Characters: 10! I love each and every one of them! They are all so real! I would talk about all of them, but I'm limiting myself to only my top favorites:
Ravin: You have to love this quiet guy indecisivewith a dark past he is running from! His dialogue is the most accurate of all time. I just feel for him.
Justin: This guy, this guy, is hilarious! My favorite of all of them.
Josiah: He's so positive and kind, he just is a sweetheart!
Adi: I love how quick on her feet she is and can make so many decisions! As someone who is the most indecisive in the world, I loved that she is able to do that.
Ash: Of all the characters, I want to know more about her! She is mysterious and tough, but a good leader in training!
Jay Hill: Jay commands all of your attention, so I have to grant it to him. He is the showman! His love for his crew is so great.
Words: 10, characters are mentioned as swearing, but all of the words themselves are omitted, which I really appreciated.
"If you look a horrible disaster, then you're all the more likely to get your named called and have to stand in front of all the people, right?"
Content: 8, there is violence, mentions of blood, and people being sick. There are deaths and killing, but there are discussions around that which are super thought provoking. Characters are hurt and there are mentions of abuse, but are shown as bad.
"If you think you're the only one here with a past, look around. We all have stories to tell, some dirtier than others."
Originality: 10, this gets a full score out of me! At every turn there is something new and I love it. Magical ships, tests for leadership, ragtag crews, count me in!
Good For: any fantasy and pirate story lovers.
Age Range: There are a lot of deaths and whatnot, but that depends on each individual's personal preference. I think I would've been fine with reading this when I was younger than 13, but that's just me.
Overall Score: 9.5!
Worth reading?: Yes, indeed! I feel so fulfilled with my daily dose of adventure now! The plot is so engaging, I'm really looking forward to more stories in this series!
Will I read again?: So far I have read it twice, and I can see this as something to enjoy from time to time, so yes!
Bonus thoughts:
This is an epic adventure if you're every looking for one! I would definitely recommend it.

Find more information on Goodreads.
Order on the WEBSITE or AMAZON.


Sarah and Helena are also hosting an awesome giveaway which I suggest you check out right HERE, right now. There is some incredible stuff there to send this book off into the world! Check both of their blogs and congratulate them on this achievement!

A huge thank you to them for allowing me to be part of this!

Thanks to all of you for reading! Have I peaked your interest? I hope I have, because this book is totally worth it!

MovieCritic

Movie Review: Three Guys Named Mike (1951)

Hello, hello, hello!

Today I'm writing about a movie I watched for a special occasion (you know me, I'm making to read to the bottom to find out what it was) which I really wasn't expecting it

My guarantee: On ALL of my reviews there are NO spoilers unless I give you warning. This is spoiler free!


Three Guys Named Mike (1951):

Based on: 'the story by Ruth Brooks Flippen, from suggestions made by Ethel 'Pug' Wells" (from Wikipedia)

"God didn't mean people to be strangers and with commercial aviation people all over the world are becoming neighbors."

Marcy Lewis is starting her job as an airline stewardess. She is a girl with a bubbling personality and millions of ideas streaming out of her all the time. Throughout her travels she meets three guys in different situations, who all are attracted to her and all happen to be named Mike! Where will Marcy's ideas get her next, and who will be with her?

Genres: Comedy, Romance.
Length: approx. 90 minutes.
Costumes: 7, standard clothing and uniforms. There is a scene where an outfit is really short, but it's part of the story, and is only there for a few minutes anyway.

Costumes by: Helen Rose.
Script: 10, no bad words or swearing!

Crew: Directed by: Charles Walters. Written by: Sidney Sheldon. Ruth Brooks Flippen, Ethel Wells.
Starring:
Jane Wyman as Marcy Lewis.
Van Johnson as Michael Lawrence.
Howard Keel as Mike Jamison. "I feel like a flying busboy."
Barry Sullivan as Mike Tracy.
Phyllis Kirk as Kathy Hunter.
Anne Sargent as Jan Baker.
Jean "Jeff" Donnell as Alice Raymend.
Barbara Billingsley as Ann White.
John Maxwell as Dr. Matthew Hardy.
Herbert Heyes as Scott Bellemy.
Robert Sherwood as Benson.
Percy Helton as Mr. Hawkins.
Bonnie Kay Eddy as Natalie.
Don McGuire as MacWade Parker.
Hugh Sanders as Mr. Wiliams.
Ethel 'Pug' Wells as Herself.
Sydney Mason as Osgood.

Cinematography: 9, while it's nothing spectacular, I was so impressed by all the airplane shots! Now we don't think much about people getting on an airplane, but this was made in 1951, when it wasn't as common! I can't recall many other movies this early to feature shots from an airplane with landings and such, so I thought that was neat.

Cinematography by: Paul C. Vogel.
Music: 7, nothing memorable if there was any.
Music by: Bronislau Kaper.
Quotability: N/A, because I just watched it for the first time so recently.

"In every class that you teach someone will remember something you say, and because of it his life will be changed a little and he'll change someone else's life, and that way you become projected into the future."

Content: 8, smoking, a few lines of innuendo, and one suggestive situation at the end, but that's it!
Originality: 9, I know that there are a few later comedies that focus on aviation (most famously Airplane (1980)), but this one seemed so original to me! I really liked Marcy's character, and everything with the story was just fun to watch.

Good For: Fans of the actors.
Age Range: I think absolutely any age could watch this and get a kick out of it! Very decent for all.
Overall Score: 8!

Worth watching?: Yep! Marcy was such a relatable protagonist! Not that most people have three guys loving them, but with how she handles situations. She messes up, sometimes in really big ways, but she isn't a bad person. She always tries to fix her mistakes and is so friendly to everyone. Just something about her struck me as being great.

"What I did was right, it just turned out wrong."

Will I watch again?: You know what? I will! It was a fun way to spend my time and I can see myself watching it multiple times in the future.

For the blogathon:
Remember that special occasion I mentioned earlier? Well, this is my contribution to The Forth Van Johnson Blogathon!

I first heard of Van Johnson during the first blogathon in his honor, and after that I realized that I had seen some films with him and began looking for new ones specifically with him in it.

I was having trouble deciding which movie to talk about for this blogathon, but I'm so glad I chose this one! His character in here was so sweet. One of my favorite parts was when a little girl, Natalie, asked another character about him: "Don't you think he's handsome?"

Check HERE for other posts about Van! Thank you to Michaela for hosting this!

Thanks to all of my readers for, well, reading! Tell me if you've seen anything with Van Johnson! Best wishes to you all!

MovieCritic

Inklings // August 2020: Back to the Future Part III

Greetings, friends!

Great Scott! It's time for another Inklings! Inklings is a monthly linkup hosted by Heidi of Along the Brandywine. How it works: Heidi writes a prompt and you write a post talking about a scene in a book or movie including that scenario. It's really fun and Heidi would love it if you joined! You don't have to do it every month, just whichever ones that you want to.
I have participated in July 2016, August 2016, September 2016, & July 2020.

Today was the final day in Heidi's Legends of Western Cinema Week which she is co-hosting with Hamlette at Hamlette's Soliloquy. Because she was planning this, August's prompt involves westerns!

August 2020's prompt: A pivotal film scene at an old time western bar

(Note: This isn't a 'saloon scene' as such, but men talking and digging their elbows in at the bar. Make sense?)

I'll try!

Read Heidi's answer HERE.

Now, I had a few ideas with this one. I rewatched a few clips of movies, but either they didn't really count or weren't that pivotal! Finally I asked my sisters if they had any ideas. My younger sister suggested this one because we watched it for the first time this year and we really enjoyed it. "Perfect!" I told her, so here we are.

My pick is from Back to the Future Part III (1990)! This trilogy is mostly famous for the first film, but in my sister's and my opinion this one might be the best! It's just so good and if you haven't seen it I recommend it (I am planning on reviewing it sometime in the future, so you can wait until then for any content concerns you have).

Spoiler alert! This scene that I'm talking about is a very important scene from the movie, and series, and is full of spoilers, so if you haven't seen it then don't read this post!

I was going to write out the whole dialogue of the scene ('cause it's more fun that way), but there is a bad word and some name calling which I'd prefer to not type out, so just watch it here to refresh your memory (but don't watch it if you haven't seen this movie!):

Why is this so important? Well, this is the moment that the whole Back to the Future trilogy has been leading up to! In the series we've seen Marty being called "chicken" and getting into fights over it which only leads him to more trouble. He got into this duel with 'Mad Dog' over such a thing. Throughout this movie his ancestor Seamus has been telling him that he doesn't always need to defend himself against that. Being called a coward is not the worst thing that can happen to you. This scene is Marty's "aha moment" as he sees his "name" appear on the headstone in the photograph. He realizes that with so much at stake, this is one fight that he needs to step away from. Because he has this moment now, at one of the final scenes he makes the same choice. You can really see his indecision in his facial expressions while he struggles with this misbelief. Ah, such a great scene, and after all he's been through we're so proud of Marty!


Well, that was fun to talk about! Thanks to Heidi for giving me the opportunity!

Thanks to all of you for reading this! If you've gotten this far I'm guessing you've seen the Back to the Future trilogy, so I would love to hear your thoughts? What do you think of this pivotal moment?

MovieCritic

The Legends of Western Cinema Week 2020 Tag!

Howdy, y'all!

Hamlette at Hamlette's Soliloquy and Heidi of Along the Brandywine are again hosting The Legends of Western Cinema Week! I wasn't able to join last year, so you can bet that I'm going full out now!

They have created a fun tag which I am filling out today! Now, I haven't seen a ton of westerns so I have decided to try to use no movie in more than one answer and therefore make it look like I've seen a lot. We'll see how this works out...

The Questions and Answers:

1. What's the last western you watched?

Big Jake (1971) which I reviewed for this week. I actually really liked it, which I wasn't expecting.

2. A western of any stripe (happy or tragic) where you were highly satisfied by the ending?

It's kind of funny, all the westerns I'm thinking of being really satisfied with the ending I don't clearly remember. I don't even remember the exact ending, I just have a feeling of being satisfied with it. Like Destry Rides Again (1938).

Also, a movie that I saw ages ago and don't even know what it was (I'm 80% sure that it's Night Passage (1957)) had an ending that absolutely destroyed me, but in a good way. And if it's in my favorites then I'm probably pretty content with that end of the story.

3. The funniest western you've seen?

Support Your Local Sheriff (1969)! In fact, this movie is in my top ten all time favorites because it is just so hilarious! If you haven't seen it, you totally should. Any time I watch it it just makes my day!
"Now that's funny, that's real funny."

4. What similar elements/themes show up in your favorite westerns?

Jimmy Stewart. I know that he isn't an element or theme, but he is my favorite part of most westerns that I've seen.

To be serious though, I think sacrifice. People putting others before themselves and making sacrifices, even of their life, to help the cause! This happens in all genres of movies, but it is something that connects quite a few of my favorite westerns.

5. Favorite actress who made 1 or more westerns?

I'm looking at my list here of all the westerns I think I've seen, and there are only a few repeating actresses, but none of them are in more than two (so far as what I've seen). I'm going with the incredible Olivia de Havilland because I've seen her in Dodge City (1939) and The Proud Rebel (1958). She just passed away last month and we will miss her terribly!

6. Favorite western hero/sidekick pairing?

Now I would list different people, but I already used that movie in the funniest question. Shucks, this is hard. But, never fear, I still have another pairing. I saw The Lone Ranger (2013) for the first time this year, and while there were parts I didn't like, the dynamic duo of John Reid and Tonto made the whole movie worth it.

7. Scariest villain/antagonist in a Western?

Liberty Valance from The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962). He's your standard "baddie" but extra mean. That isn't what is scary about him. What's scary is how he affects Ransom Stoddard, a lawyer just trying to do justice. Ransom stays strong for so long, but Liberty's constant cruelness starts to get to him, and that's scary to me. This movie is incredible and one of my favorites!

8. Favorite romance in a western?

This isn't even a question, it's so easy! Jim Craig and Jessica Harrison from The Man From Snowy River (1982). Ack, I love this movie (getting about time for a rewatch...) and these two are the reason!

9. Three of your favorite westerns?

(Note to self: Read through questions before deciding to not use any movies twice.)

If I have said in another question that it is one of my favorites, then it is and you should go watch it. Here are just some more:

The Magnificent Seven (1960)
True Grit (1969)
Home on the Range (2004) (Look, this one is full of nostalgia for me and I'm running out of options...)

10. Share one (or several!) of your favorite quotes from a western.

Well, these are going be from Support Your Local Sheriff (1969) and because we're talking about quotes instead of movies I can do that. I made the rules, I can break them. These are going to be out of context, but I hope that I can get you curious enough to watch this movie!

"I've made it no secret that I'm on my way to Australia."

"60 for who and 40 for who!?"

'"It doesn't sound a little childish to you?"

"No, I told you, I think it sounds mature."' 

(You need to hear that in Prudy's voice!)

"How dare you walk into my office and pull a gun on me."

'"Pa, you been touching up your hair again?"

"What do ya mean again!?"

"Nothing. It looks better in spots, that's all."

"What do ya mean spots!?"

"Nothin'!"'

A huge thank you to Hamlette and Heidi for hosting! Check out HERE or HERE for all things western! You're also free to do this tag, then link up with them so everyone can read it.

Thanks for reading! Anybody else seen Support Your Local Sheriff (1969)? What do you think of my answers?

MovieCritic

Movie Review: Big Jake (1971)

Hello, to all of you!

It is another day where I review a movie because it would've been an actor's birthday. A 100th birthday, too! I'd never seen this film before, but I gave it a shot today. Enjoy!

My guarantee: On ALL of my reviews there are NO spoilers unless I give you warning. This is spoiler free!


Big Jake (1971):

"The turbulent years between the civil war and the turn of the century brought out the best in some people, but in others it brought out the worst."

When a little boy is kidnapped and held for ransom, his grandmother tracks down her former husband to find him. Joined by his sons who haven't seen him in years they start following with the required sum. These criminals are dangerous and a million dollars is a lot of money, what are they willing to do to get it?

Genre: Western.
Length: approx. 110 minutes.
Costumes: 8, all decent and relevant to the times.
Script: 7, a few names callings and bad words sprinkled throughout.
Crew: Directed by: George Sherman. Written by: Harry Julian Fink & R. M. Fink.
Starring:
John Wayne as Jacob McCandles.

Richard Boone as John Fain.

Maureen O'Hara as Martha McCandles.
Christopher Mitchum as Michael McCandles.
Patrick Wayne as James McCandles.
Ethan Wayne as Little Jake McCandles

Bruce Cabot as Sam Sharpnose.

Bobby Vinton as Jeff McCandles.
Glenn Corbett as O'Brien, aka Breed.
John Doucette as Texas Ranger Capt. Buck Duggan
John Agar as Bert Ryan.
Harry Cary Jr. as Pop Dawson.
Gregg Palmer as John Goodfellow.
Jim Burk as Trooper.
Dean Smith as James William "Kid" Duffy.
Robert Warner as Will Fain.
Jeff Wingfield as Billy Devries.
Everett Creach as Walt Devries.
Roy Jenson as Gunman.
William Walker as Moses Brown.
George Fenneman as Narrator.

Cinematography: 8, the fight scenes with the darkness and light were really impressive. It was hard to see and it kept you guessing about who was lurking in the shadows.
Cinematography by: William H. Clothier.
Music: 8, it seemed like standard western music to me until the end, then I really liked the way they used it.
Music by: Elmer Bernstein.
Quotability: N/A because I just watched it. This line surprised me by how out of the blue it was:

"They say the elk in Montana are as big as buffalo this year..."

Content: 6, there is a lot of shooting with killing and blood (which is really red, so it looked kind of fake, but it was still a lot). There is a brief mention of a prostitute, but that's all of that. The biggest thing is the violence. Animals are hurt as well as people.

"There are two reasons to kill: survival and meat."

Originality: 9, I don't know what it is, but something about this seemed super original to me. I've seen stories involving ransoms and kidnappings before (even a John Wayne one), but the different elements in this one were unique.

I loved this dog.

Good For: Western fans (for sure!), John Wayne fans.
Age Range: I believe that this is PG-13 for the violence, and I'd agree with that. As I always say though, it depends on each individual.
Overall Score: 8!

Worth watching?: Yeah, it was! Now, this may shock some people, but I'm not a John Wayne fan. I've seen quite a few movies with him, but there aren't many that I like. This one though, this was good. Plus, I saw him wearing glasses for the first time (for a short period of time)!
Will I watch again?: Sure thing! I'll go more into the details why in a minute, but this may be one of my new favorite Westerns!
Bonus thoughts:
Can I say that I'm impressed? 'Cause I am! The opening was a curious (but good) way to start. There were epic parts (with some wild motorcycle skills), as well as bits that played with my heart strings. Michael was my favorite character. I love how caring he is as well as careful, but also takes some big risks. He's always so nice to his dad and kind of moderates James. He was awesome.

Who else was awesome? And it would be her birthday?

Maureen O'Hara!

While she doesn't have much screen time, she is an important character who calls most of the shots (sorry, pun not intended with this Western). Her presence seemed so regal to me in this one.

My sisters and I watched The Parent Trap (1964) a few days ago and I was thinking about reviewing it for today, but I decided on this film so it could be my first entry in Legends of Western Cinema Week 2020! You know, kill two birds with one stone?

As I said earlier, I'm glad I did because this is a new favorite Western! I don't get the chance to watch many, and usually my dad and I just make fun of how bad shots the "villains" are, but this was a solid enjoyable film for me. Now I'm in the mood for more! Are you, too? Check out HERE or HERE for a ton of more recommendations all week long.


Your turn to talk! Have any of you seen this? Favorite Western? Favorite Maureen O'Hara movie? Anything else? Thanks for reading!

Happy 100th, Maureen O'Hara!

MovieCritic

Presenting...What's My Line: Esther Williams

Good day to all my readers!

Michaela of Love Letters to Old Hollywood is hosting a blogathon in honor of one of her favorite Hollywood stars, Esther Williams! I'm a day late and a dollar short, due to technical difficulties, but I'm still joining!

I had some difficulties choosing what to write about. For a long time I've been wanting to talk about one of my favorite old TV game shows, What's My Line, here on my blog and today has granted me the perfect opportunity to start! Michaela was very gracious with my indecision, so thanks to her!

Okay, now you must be wondering, what is this game show? What's My Line was a 30 minute game show that ran from 1950-1975. This is how it worked:
A panel of four judges try to guess contestants' "lines" (jobs) by asking yes or no questions. The host/panel moderator, John Charles Daly, guided them and helped rework questions to fit the correct format. Anytime there is a solid "no", a card is flipped and the contestant earns five dollars. When all ten cards are flipped the contestant wins!

L to R: The three regular panelists, Arlene Francis, Bennett Cerf, and Dorothy Kilgallen, & the panel moderator, John Daly.

Now, this might sound boring, but I assure you that it isn't! The occupations are so unique, the panel has a hard time. Plus, the highlight is that after two contestants there is the mystery guest! This guest is a celebrity and would be recognizable, so the judges wear blindfolds and with yes or no questions have to guess who it is.

For ages I would always just skip to the mystery person, but once I started watching full episodes I realized how much I was missing. The celebrity is how I'm connecting it back to my blog. The plan for this series is to talk about all of certain celebrities appearances. To me, I think that you can tell a lot about a person based on the way they acted here.

It is time to start! Will you come in mystery challenger, and sign in please...

Source

Esther appeared on What's My Line on three different occasions. I'll list the date and panel:

January 16th, 1955: PANEL: Dorothy Kilgallen, Robert Q. Lewis, Arlene Francis, & Bennett Cerf.

July 27th, 1958: PANEL: Dorothy Kilgallen, Dick Clark, Arlene Francis, & Bennett Cerf.

September 6th, 1959: PANEL: Dorothy Kilgallen, Martin Gabel (Arlene's husband), Arlene Francis, & Bennett Cerf.

Her third time around the panel (note, Bennett) were starting to catch on to who this could be.


She was such a great contestant to watch! Some people just sit there and answer yes or no, but she was made such great comments with all of the answers! Contestants sometimes try to disguise their voices so they wouldn't be recognized and Esther had some great ones. Her first episode she sung. In the second I felt so sorry for her because she had laryngitis and whispered all the answers (the panel was not helpful, always saying, "What did she say?" They sounded like a bunch of old people). The third time she used a hilarious Southern accent. She was a harder contestant than usual, because of her amazing swim talent! The panel could usually figure out that she did something else, but they would get stuck focusing on singing and dancing. Her energy was so contagious, John and the panel would start doing whatever she was doing.

Having a "secret conference with John Daly

Here are some of my favorite moments:

Esther after being asked about her hair color: It's terribly chic!

Dorothy: Are you in some branch of the entertainment world?
Esther (singing): I try!
Arlene: Pretty hard, too.

Arlene: Would you consider yourself a leading woman?
Esther: What do you consider yourself?

Bennett: Do you also have a conspicuous talent outside of your thespian ability?
Esther: Mr. Daly, what's he referring to?
Mr. Daly: He's referring to the fact, ma'am, that you are very well known for something besides being an excellent actress in movies.
Esther: I pride myself on being many dimensional.
(She actually used that line in two shows and I'm surprised that the panel didn't catch on sooner...)

I could just sit here and type out the whole dialogue of all three shows, but I'll let you watch it for yourself.


Thanks a million to Michaela for hosting! Check out the other entries HERE.

Thanks to everyone else for reading! Let me know if anyone else has seen What's My Line. If not, it's available on Youtube. Hint, I really like watching it while doing the dishes.

Wishing you all the best!

MovieCritic

Movie Review: Go Chase Yourself (1938)

Greetings to you all!

I hope that you are all staying safe and healthy! Today I'll be reviewing a little screwball comedy that I watched last year. I wasn't doing anything that day, and sat down to watch this one because of a name that I recognized. Who was this person? Read on to see!

My guarantee: On ALL of my reviews there are NO spoilers unless I give you warning. This is spoiler free! (Not that there's anything to spoil...)

"Gentlemen, I hate to raise my voice, but LET'S TALK THIS OVER QUIETLY!"

Go Chase Yourself (1938):

A bank clerk finds himself in luck when he wins a new travel camper in a raffle. His luck begins to fall through when robbers decide to hitch up and pull his camper across the country, with him still in it! Things get worse when the police believe that he was to one to rob the bank. This camping trip is already unlike others, but will it turn out alright?

Genre: Screwball comedy.
Length: approx. 70 minutes.
Costumes: 7, just regular clothes.
Script: 10, no bad words!

"Need I remind you that you are talking to a lady and not a mortgage?"

Crew: Directed by: Edward F. Cline. Written by: Paul Yawitz, Bert Granet, & Walter O'Keefe.
Starring:
Joe Penner as Wilbur Meeley.

Lucille Ball as Carol Meeley.
Richard Lane as Nails.
June Travis as Judy Daniels.
Fritz Feld as Count Pierre Fountaine de Louis-Louis. "I'm just a simple humble nobleman."
Tom Kennedy as Icebox.
Granville Bates as Halliday.
Bradley Page as Frank.
George Irving as Mr. Daniels.
Arthur Stone as Warden.
Jack Carson as Warren Miles.
Frank M. Thomas as Police Chief.
Cinematography: 7, nothing really remarkable, though an interesting approach with having so much driving involved.
Cinematography by: Jack Mackenzie.

Music: N/A
Quotes: 8, funnily enough I actually say the "indescribable" quote (that I'll talk about later) to myself a lot.

"Copper. I don't like that word."

Content: 9, just one suggestive thing, but besides that perfectly clean!
Originality: 8, I'll admit, there are not a lot of comedies involving camping trailers, so that was a neat aspect, especially as this was made right when they were new.
Good For: Any Lucille Ball fans, any screwball comedy fans.
Age Range: It's good for any ages, and the younger the person is, the more funny they might find it!

Overall Score: 8!

"The end of the line, please!"

Bonus thoughts:
I've found that I'm very picky when it comes to comedy. Somethings are not funny enough, somethings are not serious enough. What can I say? Screwballs usually are good for me, but something about this one didn't click. I got annoyed at everyone picking at Wilbur constantly, then I got annoyed at Wilbur. But, fear not, it was not a waste of time! There were indeed parts that I liked, most of them involving the star that I watched it for who is...

Lucille Ball!

This is my entry in the We Love Lucy Blogathon! It would have been her 109th birthday. I haven't seen her in many films as I am mostly just a solid I Love Lucy watcher, but this was one where I decided to see more with her. She was very funny, and my favorite scene was with this quote:

'"Indescribable."

"Oh, that's the best way to describe him."'

Want to check out more posts celebrating Lucy? Check HERE! Thanks to Carissa for hosting this blogathon in her honor!

Thanks for reading! What is your favorite thing that you've seen with Lucy? She was a hoot!

MovieCritic