Movie; Kate (2021) Caution: Spoiler Alert

 

Kate

Came out; 2021

Time; 1 hours 46 minutes

Watched: Netflix

Rating; R for strong bloody violence and language

IMDB Rating; 6.7/10

Caution; Spoiler Alert

Staring.

Mary Elizabeth Winstead as Kate

Woody Harrelson as Varrick

Miku Patricia Martineau as Ani

Tadanobu Asano as Renji

Jun Kunimura as Kijima

Michiel Huisman as Stephen

Story Line;

Meticulous and preternaturally skilled, Kate is the perfect specimen of a finely tuned assassin at the height of her game. But when she uncharacteristically blows an assignment targeting a member of the yakuza in Tokyo, she quickly discovers she's been poisoned, a brutally slow execution that gives her less than 24 hours to exact revenge on her killers. As her body swiftly deteriorates, Kate forms an unlikely bond with the teenage daughter of one of her past victims

Thoughts;

I was skeptical of this movie, I like Mary Elizabeth Winstead, but I'm not a fan of having to “Read” movies and I had a feeling that set in Japan we'd have to read a lot of it. I also figured this would be your typical female assassin movie, but it wasn't.

There were many twists in this movie, I had it figured out closer to the end. There is a lot of graphic violence in this movie, so if you watch it be warned!

It's pretty good. I was not disappointed

CAUTION; Major Spoiler Alert

Kate is an assassin and expert sniper who eliminates targets chosen by her trusted mentor and handler, Varrick. After she was left orphaned as a child, Varrick raised her as a father figure, giving her extensive training in weapons and combat and eventually inducting her into his private team of wetwork specialists.

As the film opens, Kate is in Osaka to kill an officer of a powerful yakuza syndicate, readying herself with her rifle in a vantage point. The syndicate member steps out of his car and presents himself as a target, but Kate resists taking the shot because a child has unexpectedly accompanied him. She ultimately shoots the target at Varrick's insistence. While Kate's assignment is a success, this breach of her personal code to not kill in the presence of children leaves her in emotional turmoil. She tells Varrick that she will do one final mission, and then retire so she can start a new life.

Before the final mission, Kate meets a charismatic stranger, Stephen, at her hotel's bar. The pair share a bottle of wine and have sex in her room. Later, while preparing her sniper's nest, she starts getting symptoms of dizziness that cause her to miss the shot. Kate realizes that Stephen poisoned her, and after crashing her car, wakes up in a hospital to learn that she has acute radiation poisoning caused by Polonium-204 and only twenty-four hours to live. She steals injectable stimulant drugs and a gun and sets out to exact revenge on whoever poisoned her.

Kate tracks down Stephen and his girlfriend, and learns that they were strong-armed into poisoning her by Sato, a yakuza affiliated with the Kijima crime family. Kate finds Sato at a luxury restaurant and kills him along with dozens of armed yakuza. Desperate for information about the reclusive, well-guarded Boss Kijima, who she thinks might be behind the poisoning, she kidnaps Ani, Kijima's biracial niece. Kate realizes that Ani is the girl who saw her father die during the Osaka mission.

While Kate initially only wants to use Ani as bait to lure Kijima out into the open, she decides to become her protector upon learning that Ani's family wants to kill her as part of an internal power struggle, led by Kijima's corrupt advisor, Renji. Kate uncovers more clues about the Osaka mission and realizes that her trust in Varrick may be misplaced after tracking down Kijima, who reveals that Renji made a deal with Varrick to incorporate his team into the syndicate in exchange for killing Kijima and all of his blood relatives. Kijima, aware that Kate is close to death, provides her with a small army of his men to assault Renji's headquarters.

After a fierce gunfight, all of Renji and Varrick's men are killed, and Kijima personally beheads Renji for his betrayal. Kate locates Varrick, who is holding Ani at gunpoint. The two have a fast draw and Varrick is fatally shot in the stomach. Ani then helps Kate walk outside to the roof, where Kate, finally at peace with herself, dies.

Movie; The Valet (2022) Caution; Spoiler Alert

 

The Valet

Came out; 2022

Time; 2 hours 4 minutes

Watched: Hulu

Rating; PG-13 for sexual content, some strong language and brief drug material

IMDB Rating; 6.7/10

Caution; Spoiler Alert

Staring.

Eugenio Derbez as Antonio Flores

Samara Weaving as Olivia Allan

Max Greenfield as Vincent Royce

Betsy Brandt as Kathryn Royce

Carmen Salinas as Cecilia

Amaury Nolasco as Benny

Carlos Santos as Javier

Story Line;

A movie star enlists a parking valet at a Beverly Hills restaurant to pose as her lover to cover for her relationship with a married man

Thoughts;

Samara Weaving has a very unique look and I've seen her in several movies. I'm actually surprised she isn't a bigger actress.

This movie was different, I'm sure there have been things made like this before. I love Max Greenfield, so this was great! It was a funny, heartfelt movie and not at all what I expected

CAUTION; Major Spoiler Alert

Antonio Flores is a humble valet living with his mother, Cecilia. He is a divorced father sharing the custody of his teenage son with his ex-wife, Isabel. Meanwhile, actress Olivia Allan is having an affair with city developer and married billionaire Vincent Royce. One night, when Olivia is with Vincent, Antonio has an accident nearby, and the three are photographed together, sparking rumors of Olivia and Vincent's affair. Fearing he will lose his company if his wife Kathryn divorces him, Vincent comes up with a plan to have Olivia and Antonio pretend to be a couple. Olivia accepts the proposal because she wants to avoid any bad publicity before the premiere of her new movie, Earhart, in which she stars as Amelia Earhart. Antonio requests $12,850 from Vincent to pay for Isabel's debts. Antonio and Olivia go out for lunch surrounded by paparazzi. Olivia is rude to Antonio during the date and he notices her superficial personality when she is in public. Everybody, except Kathryn and Vincent, falls for the ploy and starts to believe Antonio and Olivia are a real couple. Kathryn hires a private investigator to tail them as they attend the Hollywood premiere of Earhart. Kathryn questions Antonio, who stands up for himself when she criticizes his occupation. As he leaves the event, Antonio realizes that he has become famous, especially with those in the Latin American community. Antonio and his friends drive a drunk Olivia home. The next day, Olivia is given a proper breakfast by Antonio's family. She notices their love for each other and positive energy. Vincent is incorrectly led to believe that Antonio and Olivia slept together, making him jealous. Earhart receives positive reviews after the premiere but Olivia remains sad about Vincent. Olivia attends Antonio's son's play at school. Antonio tells Isabel the truth. Antonio and Olivia spend the rest of the night in a Latin neighborhood where nobody recognizes her. Back home, they pretend to have sex with each other when they see private investigators. Olivia acknowledges that she has not been living a healthy lifestyle. The following day, Isabel tells Antonio that she does not want to be with him. Antonio and Olivia argue and break up. Vincent punches Antonio. Vincent's lawyer pays Antonio $25,000. Cecilia suffers a stroke and dies. At the funeral, Antonio delivers a touching eulogy about his mother's hardships to give him and his siblings a better life in the US. Kathryn learns the truth about Vincent and files for divorce. After Vincent is arrested for embezzlement, Kathryn takes over the company and cancels the gentrification plan for Antonio's neighborhood. Antonio and his friend, Natalie, begin dating.

Wax; Glitterati Mystery Box; May 2022

 

Vendor; The Glitterati Wax Company

Facebook; www.facebook.com/groups/GlitteratiCandleCo

Owner; Janine Jenzano

What I received

Mystery Box

Scent; Bamboo + Rainbow Sorbet + White Clouds

Thoughts: The rainbow sorbet gives it a fruity background. It's a soft, clean type scent

Scent; Mallow Fluff + Lavender + Holiday (Toasted Coconut + Orange Soda + Cotton Candy)

Thoughts: I do actually smell the orange in this one, usually I don't. It's a very lavender scent which is perfect

Scent; Coral Sands + Tahiti Treat

Thoughts: I can't place these scents, it's almost Jamacia me Crazy and an orange scent

Scent; Blueberry Cobbler + Vanilla Ice Cream

Thoughts: This is your typical blueberry ice cream scent

Scent; Warm Apple Pie + Vanilla Ice Cream + Green Apple

Thoughts: Wow this is apple, it's not even toned down by the vanilla ice cream

Scent; Black Raspberry Vanilla + Raspberry Mousse + Waffle Cone

Thoughts; This smells really good! It's a very berry bakery scent!

Scent; Strawberry Bubble Gum Cookies

Thoughts: This smells exactly what it sounds like it should

Scent; Wildberry Crumb Cake + Cake Batter + Blackberries

Thoughts; This is an awesome berry cake scent

Scent; Banana Flambe + Vanilla Ice Cream + Donut Shop

Thoughts; I was afraid of this, banana scents can go either way, this one however is a good bakery banana that will be interesting to melt

Scent; White Cake + Violet + He Said, She Said

Thoughts; This smells amazing, except I have no clue what he said, she said is! I couldn't even find it in the group

Scent; Strawberry + Pina Colada + Vanilla Ice Cream

Thoughts: Pina Colada is not a scent I care for, however it's not the main scent here. It's pretty good actually and we will see how it smells while melting

Scent; Strawberry Layer Cake + Iced Lemon Cookies + Peeps

Thoughts; I am not a lemon fav, but this is a very good fruity bakery scent

Thoughts;

I like the wax for the most part. I don't like that it's so soft, I wish it was a bit stronger. I also wish it was a bit easier to get.

Everything smells great. She did raise her prices again so a box of mystery chunks will run you over $65 with shipping. I'm not sure if I'll be putting myself on the list going forward

Movie; Uncharted (2022) Caution; Spoiler Alert

Uncharted

Came out; 2022

Time; 1 hour 56 minutes

Watched: On Demand

Rating; PG-13 for violence/action and language

IMDB Rating; 6.4/10

Caution; Spoiler Alert

Staring. 

Tom Holland as Nathan Drake

Mark Wahlberg as Victor Sullivan

Antonio Banderas as Santiago Moncada

Sophia Ali as Chloe Frazer

Tati Gabrielle as Braddock

Story Line;

Street-smart Nathan Drake (Tom Holland) is recruited by seasoned treasure hunter Victor "Sully" Sullivan (Mark Wahlberg) to recover a fortune amassed by Ferdinand Magellan and lost 500 years ago by the House of Moncada. What starts as a heist job for the duo becomes a globe-trotting, white-knuckle race to reach the prize before the ruthless Santiago Moncada (Antonio Banderas), who believes he and his family are the rightful heirs. If Nate and Sully can decipher the clues and solve one of the world's oldest mysteries, they stand to find $5 billion in treasure and perhaps even Nate's long-lost brother...but only if they can learn to work together. 

Thoughts;

I like Mark Wahlberg and I like Tom Holland so I figured this movie would be pretty fun. I was a bit upset that it was a basic Goonies (My favorite movie) knock off. 

All in all, it was pretty good, there was action and I was happy to see Tati Gabrielle in a movie, I had only seen her in Sabrina on Netflix, she is very unique. 

CAUTION; Major Spoiler Alert

None listed

Movie; The Goldfinch (2019) Caution; Spoiler Alerts

 

The Goldfinch

Came out; 2019

Time; 2 hours 29 minutes

Watched: Amazon

Rating; R for drug use and language

IMDB Rating; 6.3/10

Caution; Spoiler Alert

Staring.

Oakes Fegley as Young Theo Decker

Ansel Elgort as Adult Theo Decker

Nicole Kidman as Mrs. Babour

Jeffrey Wright as Hobie

Luke Wilson as Larry

Sarah Paulson as Xandra

Willa Fitzgerald as Adult Kitsey Barbour

Finn Wolfhard as Young Boris

Aneurin Barnard as Adult Boris

Story Line;

A boy in New York is taken in by a wealthy family after his mother is killed in a bombing at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. In a rush of panic, he steals 'The Goldfinch', a painting that eventually draws him into a world of crime

Thoughts.

My daughter loves this movie and when I asked her what she wanted to watch, this was the chosen movie.

I personally couldn't keep things straight. I was a bit confused. I got the concept of the movie but it was too much back and forth

CAUTION; Major Spoiler Alert

A boy, Theo, is noticeably shaken and being held by the police. His mother has died after an explosion during a visit to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. He feels he is responsible for the death of his mother. The whereabouts of his father are unknown. He has given the police the name of a mother, Samantha Barbour, whose family he knows from school. The woman agrees to take responsibility of him as an obligation since no one in Theo's family is available. He is clearly emotionally devastated, but shows no sign of crying. Police repeatedly ask him questions about his location, his mother's location, who and what else he has seen around the time of the explosion, etc. The woman stands up for him and his apparent lack of memory. Theo goes home with the mother. He makes good friends with Andy, the curly-haired son who is just under his age. The family is somewhat dysfunctional, especially visible in incidents involving the strong-willed father and the impudent oldest son, Platt.

We learn that Theo had received a ring from a man killed in the blast. He was asked to return it to Hobart and Blackwell. Theo resourcefully finds the address of Hobart and Blackwell in the phone book and ventures out to deliver the ring. He is invited in and develops a friendship with the antique dealer, Hobie, who had lost his business partner Welty in the blast. Hobie is taking care of Pippa, the red-haired daughter of Welty Blackwell who Theo admired immediately before the blast. Pippa has major head injuries and spends most of her time in bed and is discouraged from listening to music since she needs rest more than music practice. Pippa and Theo have a strong bond since both just lost the main part of their families in the explosion. Pippa's mother had already passed away prior to the explosion due to illness.

Theo spends time at both the Barbour family and the Hobie's shop and home. He learns about antique restoration from Hobie. He develops stronger ties to Andy and Mrs. Barbour. Theo is invited to join them for their summer vacation. However, soon after that invitation, Theo's father shows up along with his girlfriend. Theo disappointedly is required to travel off to live with his father, Larry, and the father's girlfriend, Xandra, in a mostly foreclosed neighborhood at the edge of the desert. Life is lonely at the new school and in the neighborhood, until Theo meets another loner named Boris. Boris is an awkward classmate who has lived many places as his father is a miner. Boris has no mother and his father is typically away. This allows plenty of time for Boris to shoplift, experiment with drugs, and get into other mischief. Some of these habits are adopted by Theo as well.

Through flashbacks, we learn that Theo immediately after the explosion had been encouraged by Welty to take the valuable painting, The Goldfinch, as Welty was dying. Theo had kept it wrapped up, sporadically hugging it as it was a source of comfort, his mother's favorite painting, and the last art he had seen before his life was radically changed. It becomes more and more clear that Theo's life all began its downward spiral right at the moment of that terrible explosion.

Larry happens to be in serious debt trouble and attempts to get Theo to transfer $65,000 out of the inheritance from his mother. The plan fails as the money can only be transferred directly to a school. Larry is in despair and ends up getting extremely drunk and killing himself in an auto accident. Theo and Boris learn of the father's death during one of their drug trips. Soon after, Theo decides that he must leave before he is assigned to a foster home. He heads back to New York and moves in with Hobie.

The next scene shows Theo after a few years have passed, and we see Theo as a young man -- no longer a boy. Hobie has taught Theo about antique restoration and Theo joins Hobie's company, working as the sales arm of Hobart and Blackwell. His assistance leads to increased financial success, although it becomes clear that sometimes Theo is selling the reproductions as authentic antiques and not just as stated, high-quality reproductions of antiques as Hobie had intended.

A dissatisfied customer complains to Theo that he had been tricked during his purchase of furniture that was offered to him as an authentic. To further avoid trouble, Theo offers to buy it back even beyond the purchase price. However, the customer actually knows far more, has done extensive research, and announces that he knows that Theo had taken "The Goldfinch". Theo does not let on that he took it or has it. Tensions are high and the customer later divulges his knowledge to the highly honest Hobie. Hobie confronts Theo about the new information, and Theo regretfully confesses to a much disappointed Hobie that the claim is true.

Other tragedies have occurred. Andy and his father had passed away during a storm on the open seas, and this has hit Mrs. Barbour hard. As for Theo's love life: Theo's true love, Pippa is committed to another man. Theo has therefore focused his affection for the now grown-up daughter, Kitsey, of Mrs. Barbour. However, Theo finds that even while engaged, Kitsey has been and remains romantically involved with another man who she loves -- clearly not to the liking of Theo.

In coping with the continued tragedies, Theo continues his drug habits, and this once again brings him by chance in contact with the now grown-up Boris. Boris is more wealthy now and has his own driver. Boris confesses that he had actually taken the painting "The Goldfinch" years ago from Theo. Theo had last opened it up during one of their drug trips, of which Theo had no recall. Boris had actually during the high-school days, secretly taken the painting and unbeknownst to Theo, replaced it with a Civics book.

Since then, the painting was truly lost and out of the country, no longer in Boris's possession. However, Boris had a plan to get it back, to set things right again between him and Theo. The plan involved money and guns and dealing with professional crooks and did not go well. The painting was again lost. Theo was now at the bottom of his spiral, took a lethal dose of drugs and began hallucinating. Just then, Boris rushes into the hotel room, forces Theo to vomit the drugs out and returns Theo back to life. Boris also had served as an informant about the missing painting and delivers Theo the news that the police have finally found "The Goldfinch" and have returned it to its rightful place in the museum. The movie allows one to wonder after his second chance if Theo can overcome and achieve the life to eventually surmount the terrible event.

Wax; Waxincredibles May 2022 Mystery Bag

 

Vendor; Waxincredibles

Web; https://waxincredibles.com/

Facebook; www.facebook.com/groups/859386184234624

Owner; Nadine Theis

What I received

Mystery Bag. All 2-ounce scent shots

Scent; Toast 2 Life

Scent Destination; Crisp effervescent notes of sparkling champagne, nectarine and black currant

Thoughts: This is a very nice crisp scent; I love the champagne and nectarine notes that come out

Scent; Breakfast at Tiffany's

Scent Destination; Cupcake at Tiffany's, Tea and Cakes, Angel Food Cake and Fruit Loops

Thoughts; Damn this smells amazing! I love this one so much

Scent; Aloha Pineapple Cake

Thoughts; There isn't a scent description on this one but it is a pineapple cake for sure

Scent; Sunshine

Scent Description: Citrus top notes trickle down an exotic heart of jungle fruits and flowers over a sweetheart of sugary musk

Thoughts; This is most definitely fruity

Scent; Living My Best Life

Scent Description; Mahogany Coconut, crushed vanilla, soft amber, musk and fresh linen

Thoughts; The mahogany coconut is the main scent but the fresh linen comes through in this also, it's a very manly type scent

Scent; Bum Bum Cream Type

Scent Description; Pistachio and salted caramel with a warm base of sandalwood and vanilla

Thoughts; This is a single scent but this one smells nice and strong

Scent; Wildberry Dreams

Scent Description; Wild berries, butter jam cookies and sweet cotton candy

Thoughts; This smells amazing! I love the blackberry jam butter cookies, the sweetness of cotton candy comes though

Scent; K-Pop

Scent Description; Fruity Green Florals, berries and effervescent fizzy pop

Thoughts; The fizzy pop stands out, the berries come next. This will be an interesting scent

Scent; Mocha Latte Ice Cream

Thoughts; This smells awesome! I love the Ice Cream with the Mocha Latte

Scent; Castaway

Scent Description; White floral beachy fragrance, white sands, clear water and lovely ocean breezes

Thoughts; This is a great clean scent and it smells amazing!

Scent; Blueberry Muffin Cake

Scent Description; Blueberries, white cake and fluffy marshmallow

Thoughts; I love this one! My son loves blueberries and this scent is always up my alley

Scent; Bamboo Sugarcane

Scent Description; Citrus and sweet floras of jasmine and rose with green leaves on a dry down of pure sugar

Thoughts; This is a single oil but it's such a nice scent! It's super clean with a nice sweet tone

Scent; All Caked Out

Scent Description; Buttercream Icing, luscious vanilla cake, sweet maple sugar, sweet cream and toasted coconut

Thoughts; This smells rather light but it's such a creamy light scent

Scent; Pink Sea Breeze

Scent Description; Pink Chiffon, Salty Sea Air and Kudzu

Thoughts; OMG, this is amazing, It's such a great beachy clean scent

Scent; Bamboo Coconut

Thoughts; This is a green scent to my nose, this is a scent I'm always on the fence about

Thoughts;

I say every time I order that I love this vendor and I always forget about them. The owner is super nice, the prices are great and the scents are awesome! This is a mystery bag and everything is perfect!

The shipping is quick. I can't wait to melt these!

Bath & Body; Ashley's Home Creations; Mother's Day Bundle

 

Vendor; Ashley's Home Creations

Web; None

Facebook; www.facebook.com/groups/163337493655694

Owner; Ashley Brantley Moore

What I received

Mother's Day Bundle

Lip Scrub & Gloss

Lip Scrub scented in Peppermint

Lip Gloss scented in Red Velvet

Lotion & Scrub

Scrub scented in Vanilla Dream Pink Sugar

Lotion scented in Strawberry Vanilla Cookie

Perfume Oil scented in Buttercream Cupcakes at Tiffany's Vanilla Dream

Bar of Soap

Aroma Beads scented in Cupcakes at Tiffany's

Thoughts.

I love how Ashley puts all her love into her bundles. I was very happy to have been able to grab one.

I don't care much for her labels, but I can look past that because I love the product and the person behind them.