Dark Fiction: Holly Black Event in London.


So I was invited by Indigo Publishing to a Holly Black event in London last Monday in celebration of The Coldest Girl in Coldtown. I've had my eye on this book for a long while now so I was extremely happy to have received an invitation to this event. Sarah Rees Brennan was also on tour with Holly, promoting her series The Lynburn Legancy.

It's so hard for me to find time to read during my university term time so I've still only read four chapters of The Coldest Girl in Coldtown, but damn, those were a good four chapters and I can't wait to read more. I haven't read very much paranormal fiction recently because they all started to merge into one and become a bit same-y, but I think The Coldest Girl in Coldtown actually has a unique plot line so it should be a good read.

So I arrived at the event having travelled for two and a half hours from the centre of Oxford. The journey took so darn long, but it was worth it! When I arrived, the room was already packed with people and I had to squeeze my way into a random empty seat near the back. There was a bit of a wait before the authors came out during which most people chatted excitedly with their neighbours or continued with their current reads (standard bookworms). Finally, they appeared and the event got started. Both authors read an extract from their books, Holly Black read chapter three of The Coldest Girl in Coldtown and Sarah Rees Brennan read an extract from her upcoming book 'Unbroken'. I haven't read any books by either author but both extracts were really gripping and made me want to pick a copy of both books immediately.

I distinctly remember Holly Black telling us that when she was younger her mum used to tell her the story of Dracula, particularly noting the 'unnatural' way that he would climb all over buildings and how this was the start of her fascination with gothic fiction. Why do I remember this particular snippet, you ask? Well, the following night, I had a nightmare featuring my friend dressed up as Einstein on Halloween, moving in an 'unnatural' way, climbing all over my university tower but also being incredibly stretchy like Mister Fantastic from Fantastic Four - a terrifying combination.

Someone from the audience asked Holly how to deal with writers block, to which she responded that writer's block is actually just indicative that something else in your life isn't quite right and is bothering you so the root of the problem may not actually be in your writing at all. I think Holly may have said that this tip was actually taken from Cassandra Clare who I believe is in the same critique circle as Holly Black (omgomgomg) but I'm not 100% sure on that one.

Both authors were also asked whether they plan their novels prior to writing them and Holly said that she started her novels with an image and built her stories from there sometimes rewriting bits that don't quite work, whereas Sarah Rees Brennan likes to plan the novel out prior to writing it, however, she added that she rarely sticks to said plan.

Both authors are absolutely hilarious, Sarah Rees Brennan being particularly outgoing and spending a great deal of her time running from one end of the room to another or gesticulating wildly at the front of the room whilst Holly Black admitted to being quite nervous in front of people and fearing that everybody hates her. (How could anyone ever hate Holly Black?!)

At the end of the Q&A, everybody lined up to get their books signed. I probably waited for somewhere between 1/2 hour and hour for a mere 30 seconds with Holly Black but who cares - I got my book signed :) I'd read the first chapter of The Coldest Girl in Coldtown whilst waiting in the queue so I was feeling more and more pumped about coming face to face with the author as the queue slowly moved along. Pic to the left ;)

Don't forget to enter my giveaway here too! Win a book of your choice worth up to £8/$12 from The Book Depository :) Enter via Rafflecopter below:

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Batman Begins.

I have to admit, I used to hate Batman with a passion. Spiderman has always been my favourite superhero and I guess I always thought Batman looked pretty darn evil since he's always dressed in black and has a creepy voice. Then, I was dragged along to see The Dark Knight Rises in the cinema and everything changed. I wasn't just a new Batman fan, I was frickin' Batman obsessed. I now own several Batman t-shirts, Batman underwear and lots of other Batman memorabilia.

Batman Begins, unsurprisingly, is the first film in Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy, now known as The Dark Knight trilogy. The story begins with a young Bruce Wayne who witnesses his parents deaths' at the hands of a desperate beggar, out to steal his father's wallet. After this tragedy, Bruce has never been the same. Many years later, Joe Chill, the man who murdered his parents, is granted parole in exchange for testifying against Gotham's most feared criminal: Falcone. Bruce goes to the trial with the intention of finished Joe Chill off himself; however, one of Falcone's men gets there first. Still full of angry thoughts and determined to find out more about the criminal underworld, Bruce goes travelling. He gets into a bit of trouble on his travels and ends up in a prison in Bhutan but he is soon rescued by Henri, a member of the League of Shadows lead by Ra's al Ghul, who offers to train him to overcome his fears and become as stealthy as a ninja. After completing his training, Bruce finds out that the true intention of Ra's al Ghul is to destory Gotham City, so he leaves the League of Shadows and returns to Gotham to help fight crime and protect the city. Thus, Batman is born.


Batman Begins is almost 10 years old now, it was released in 2005, and when watching most films from that time period now, you can tell that they're slightly dated from either the different fashions, slightly dodgy CGI or lesser quality graphics, but this wasn't the case at all with Batman Begins. I firmly believe that this film is, and will forever be, timeless. I was really impressed by the action sequences, the high speed chases, the quality of the costumes - everything. All of these things get better as technology progresses but this film must've been way ahead of it's time when it was released because all of those things still managed to impress me nearly 10 years on. Gotham City is, of course, fake and so is the Bat Cave, but from watching this film you wouldn't know it. There actually aren't too many CGI effects in this film as the director, Nolan, preferred 'traditional stuntwork'. How everything looked so darn real is beyond me. There wasn't a single moment in this film when I thought to myelf that something was unrealistic because I believed that what I was watching was reality (yes, it was that good).

The plot had me gripped the entire way through the film. I was watching this on my TV at home and I kept trying to multitask and complete a crossword or play a game on my iPhone but after mere seconds of distraction my eyes were glued right back on the screen. This film is almost two and half hours long, but it held my attention for pretty much every second. The plot is fast paced with the story developing all the time. This is an amazing start to a trilogy because it gets right into the action without sacrificing any of the much needed background explanation, thereby setting a concrete foundation for the subsequent two films and making this a very interesting film in its own right. One thing that bothered me about the plot was that I felt it was quite similar to that of The Dark Knight Rises in some ways (yes, I watched the last film before the first film), though I guess that would be classified as a fault of the latter and not Batman Begins.


The cast is absolutely brilliant with a vast array of talented actors. Christian Bale is a phenomenal actor with the ability to play a wide range of different personas. Bale can do happy, sad, angry, vengeful, surprised, determined, scary, playboy - you name it, he can do it. I honestly cannot think of anyone better for the role of Batman than Christian Bale as he gives a superb performance both Batman and Bruce Wayne. I never doubted Batman for a second, despite the fact that he's dressed up as a bat, has a raspy voice and a drives a Batmobile. Batman is a character that borders on the ridiculous but with Bale's solid performance there's no doubt that Batman means serious sh*t. Alongside Bale, there's Gary Oldman, Liam Neesom, Katie Holmes, Michael Caine, Cillian Murphy, Tom Wilkinson and Morgan Freeman. You just can't go wrong with this cast. If any one of the above people had been replaced with someone else, this film just wouldn't have been the same. Each and every one of these actors has such a unique presence on screen and together they are simply fantastic.
Something to note is that this film was genuinely rather frightening at some points so I probably wouldn't recommend that anyone under the age of about 12 years old watch it. Despite the fact the fact that Batman Begins is a very serious story, there are still elements of humour dotted throughout which are much needed considering how dark this tale is. It's by no means a funny film but there's just the right amount of darkness and humour to stop you from slipping into a dark pit of despair whilst watching.


In addition, the soundtrack is brilliant. The soundtrack is something that I only ever pick up on in the very best of films and I have to say that the score for Batman Begins really did the film justice. The action, the drama, the darkness, is all supported by this fantastic array of sounds and without the soundtrack I definitely wouldn't have found as dramatic or entertaining. It's amazing how much a soundtrack can add to a film but hats off to Hans Zimmer, the composer, for this dark, musical masterpiece.

All in all, Batman Begins is a fantastic film with a gripping plot, a vast array of talented actors, great action sequences, lots of mystery and intrigue and a good soundtrack. I would highly recommend this film and the rest of the series as each and every film in the The Dark Knight trilogy is a masterpiece.

The Sea Close By by Albert Camus.

Title: The Sea Close By
Author: Albert Camus
Genre: Essays
Publisher: Penguin
Publication Date: 1st August 2013
Goodreads Summary: Part of the Penguin Classics campaign celebrating 100 years of Albert Camus, A Sea Close By reveals the writer as a sensual witness of landscapes, the sea and sailing. It is a light, summery day-dream.

Accompanying The Sea Close By is the essay Summer in Algiers, a lovesong to his Mediterranean childhood.

{ Review }

At only 22 pages long, this is a short and sweet read. This a collection of two essays by Camus: The Sea Close By and Summer in Algiers. The former is about the sea whilst the latter is about the city and so these two essays compliment each other very well in this short collection.

This little book is absolutely beautiful with quote after quote after quote that will make your heart swell. I have to admit, I didn't understand what Camus was getting at sometimes but this didn't bother me because the way in which he expresses himself is just sublime. In order to truly appreciate this piece of work, I imagine one would have to read it incredibly slowly and carefully so as not to miss one single adjective. Whilst reading this, I felt like I had been transported to another world because Camus descriptions are so real and so beautiful.

For me, reading this was definitely more style over substance. I don't feel that these works had a particular aim or purpose other than for Camus to put his thoughts down, and my, what beautiful thoughts. Both of these essays are observations, not stories, so you're really just following a trail of thought.


All in all, I wouldn't expect much more from this little book than 22 pages of the most beautiful writing you've ever read. If writing in books wasn't one of my pet peeves, I would've definitely highlighted passages of this book so that I could remember my favourite parts. That said, I probably would've highlighted the entire novel. The Sea Close By is a lovely little booklet that one could spend a summer afternoon devouring. It's also the sort of book that you can pick up time and time again, flick to a random page, read a random passage and just sigh at the beauty of life. Highly recommended.

If you answered yes to the above questions then keep reading, because this is the post for you! A new app, GottaFlo (see initial review here), is looking for TEN people to test out their app for a week. In return for participating in this competition and posting 1 photo a day for a week, you will receive a $10 iTunes card as well the opportunity to win a prepaid $50 mastercard for the best photo! GottaFlo is a really cool new app that offers so much more than other photography apps out there. Currently trending on GottaFlo is #Halloween and they've just introduced sections for top 10 users and more. They've got some neat features coming up which I will be revealing shortly, but seriously this app is not to be missed. I mean, how often do you get paid to participate in a competition for even more money?!



So, what do you have to do to get the $10 iTunes card?
1. Download the GottaFlo app to your iPhone
2. Follow GottaFlo on the app
3. Post at least 1 photo for 2 consecutive days on October 22 to October 23, 2013.

The iTunes card will be sent out on October 25, 2013. An email will be required from the tester in order to send out this card to the tester. Each participant that qualifies will be given (1) $10 iTunes card each.

And the $50 prepaid mastercard?
1. First complete the steps to participate (and get a $10 iTunes card) outlined above
2. Post at least 1 picture on each of the 7 days for this contest. So this means that you must post at least 1 picture each day on the GottaFlo app from October 22 to October 28, 2013.
3. Please tag your photos using the hashtag #gflocontest
4. At the end of the 7 days, you will be required to fill out a short survey. The survey will take approximately 5 minutes.
5. The short survey will sent on October 28, 2013 and must be completed and submitted by October 29, 2013, 11pm mountain time.

The winner of the best photo contest for the pre-paid $50.00 MasterCard will be announced on our Facebook fan page, Twitter and on the GottaFlo app. The winner will also be contacted via email on November 3, 2013.

Sound good to you? There's nothing to lose and you are generously rewarded for your time as I'm sure you can see.

In short, if you want to get involved, leave your email in the comments, or send me an email at contact.whatshotblog@gmail.com expressing your interest. I only need ten reviewers so first come first serve!! More details will be sent to you via email after you have signed up.

It's giveaway time again! I've just finished my first week at university and fresher's week has been AWESOME. Lectures and tutorials started today and they're not going so well. Clearly I need to stop slacking and actually do some work. Anyways, since I anticipate posts being a bit slow on here until I get settled down, here's another giveaway!




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The Dark Divine by Bree Despain.

Title: The Dark Divine
Author: Bree Despain
Genre: Young Adult, Paranormal
Publisher: Egmont
Publication Date: 5th July 2010
Goodreads Summary: Grace Divine, daughter of the local pastor, always knew something terrible happened the night Daniel Kalbi disappeared--the night she found her brother Jude collapsed on the porch, covered in his own blood--but she has no idea what a truly monstrous secret that night held.

The memories her family has tried to bury resurface when Daniel returns, three years later, and enrolls in Grace and Jude's high school. Despite promising Jude she'll stay away, Grace cannot deny her attraction to Daniel's shocking artistic abilities, his way of getting her to look at the world from new angles, and the strange, hungry glint in his eyes.

The closer Grace gets to Daniel, the more she jeopardizes her life, as her actions stir resentment in Jude and drive him to embrace the ancient evil Daniel unleashed that horrific night. Grace must discover the truth behind the boy's dark secret...and the cure that can save the ones she loves. But she may have to lay down the ultimate sacrifice to do it--her soul.

{ Review }

I've owned this book for a couple of years now but I've been putting off reading it because I thought it was just another one of those books, yknow, the paranormal romances that fed off the popularity of the Twilight Saga. It turns out that isn't one of those books and I really enjoyed reading this story. I flew through the entire book in just one evening as I was just so desperate to get to the bottom of all the mysteries entailed!

The Dark Divine is told from the point of view of Grace Divine, the teenage daughter of a Pastor. The book begins with the reappearance of Daniel, Grace's brother Jude's ex-best friend. He disappeared from the Divine family's lives around three years ago after an incident with Jude which involved Jude coming home hurt and covered in a lot of blood. Ever since then, Daniel's name has become a sort of taboo in the Divine family household but Grace, who always had a crush on Daniel as they were growing up, still misses him. When he arrives back in town, he's sporting a new hair style and colour, but most of all a new attitude. Daniel smells like trouble and Jude warns Grace to stay away from him, but despite all the warnings, she's still drawn to him. Mysterious things start happening in their town with babies going missing, pets turning up dead and bodies being found with huge gashes on them. Grace isn't sure who she can and cannot trust, all she knows is that strange things have been happening since Daniel got back and that her attraction to him may lead her into danger.

Now you're probably thinking that you already know this story and that you've read it countless times before, but trust me, you haven't. I'm guessing that from reading the synopsis you think that you've got a pretty good idea of what's going on but this novel is full of plot twists and continually surprised me right until the very end. This book is not predictable in the slightest and when everything comes to light at the end of the novel you'll kick yourself for not thinking about alternative explanations for this book's happenings. This book could definitely be classified as a mystery as there are lots of loose ends left along the way as this story unfolds that aren't cleared up until the very end.

My opinion of the lead characters changed dramatically over the course of the book as different snippets of information were revealed and nothing and nobody are as they seem. One of the things that bothered me was that when paranormal aspects of the plot were revealed, characters didn't seem all that shocked by it, particularly Grace. When Grace finds out that paranormal creatures do in fact exist, she isn't fazed at all and life goes on as normal. The naivety of her character is extremely annoying at the beginning but she realises her mistake and she grows on you for the rest of the novel. These characters feel quite 'real' compared to those that I have read about in other novels. Despite the fact that Grace is the daughter of a pastor and her family are kinder and more generous than most, none of them are perfect. The characters all still experience doubt and fear, all those emotions that make you seem more human.

I'm a bit torn as to whether or not I'd call the relationship between Grace and Daniel a case of 'instalove'. They've technically known each other since they were very, very young children, but they've never been anything but friends, and yet after Daniel's three year absence, she's in love with him. This is a little perplexing though not entirely unrealistic, I just wish that the author had included even more snippets from their past so that their relationship would be more believable. That said, I did really enjoy the romantic aspects of this novel and there are several quotes in which the author has captured the mind of a teenage girl so perfectly.

Something that was a bit strange was that there were sort of subheadings within each chapter telling you what time of day it was or where the action was located, but these really weren't needed and interrupted the flow of the action. I learnt to ignore these as I read the novel because they weren't helpful and I didn't need them to understand what was going on and I really wish that they had just not been included.

Bree Despain has a fairly new take on paranormal romance. It's not entirely unique; however, it was unique enough for it not to remind me of another novel and for it not to bore me so I guess it's a success. This book could be read as either a stand-alone book or as part of series. The ending of The Dark Divine has definitely left itself open for another book, but if you've had enough of Daniel and Grace then it's just as good a place to finish. This book isn't that fast paced and a lot of the action doesn't take place until the very end, but the story still holds your attention until this point and it's well worth the wait. When I started reading this book I was convinced that I knew what was going on but I could've have been more wrong. I was pleasantly surprised by this book and it's definitely one of the better YA paranormal romances that I've read.

Suits Season 2. 

Crucial info about season one: Mike Ross, an unemployed young man with an incredible ability to memorise facts, is taken on at law firm Pearson & Hardman, a firm that only hires Harvard Law graduates. Mike didn't graduate from Harvard, in fact, he didn't graduate from anywhere but when he accidentally stumbles into the interview room for first years at Pearson & Hardman, he manages to impress the firm's hot shot lawyer, Harvey Specter, and earns himself a job.

I didn't think it was possible, but Suits Season 2 is even better than Season 1. Whilst Season 1 focused a lot on the cases and the law suits, Season 2 gets personal. David Hardman (Yeah, Hardman as in 'Pearson & Hardman') is back and he means business. Hardman left the firm years ago after he was caught embezzling company money, something Jessica (Pearson) kept quiet as long as he left the firm, but after the death of his wife, he's back, claiming that he's a new person. Whilst Harvey and Jessica remain skeptical of this 'new' Daniel, the rest of the company seems to have been won over by him and rumours of takeovers start to arise.
All the main characters have got issues going on both at work and in their personal lives so there's so much more drama in season two. Harvey, Mike, Jessica, Rachel, Donna and Louis all face hardships and there's a lot of tension between characters as people start choosing sides between Jessica and Daniel. I felt that the plot was much, much better in season 2 because the added element of each character's personal lives made the show even more interesting to watch and made sure that season 2 stepped it up a notch from season 1. That said, the majority of the action still takes place in their working environment and the plot has been cleverly crafted so that both the personal and the professional are seamlessly interlinked so there's not risk of this descending into a soap opera type drama.

Despite the fact that things get a lot more serious in this season, this show is still really funny. There is a brilliant fusion of humour and drama here so you find yourself either gripping the edge of your seat or chortling to yourself. The fact that there is an element of humour to this show is definitely one of the reasons that it's so successful as it lightens the serious tone ever so slightly. I don't know how the scriptwriter has done it but the tone of the entire show is kept perfectly balanced so that it doesn't become too melodramatic or too comic.
The cases in each episode are all really fascinating so if you're someone that's interested in law this show has a sort of extra learning element to it too. Prior to watching Suits I had absolutely no interest in the law or becoming a lawyer but now I am. You find that you learn a shockingly large amount about the law and how court cases work by watching this show as it doesn't shy away from using professional and technical language. That said, this doesn't alienate those that don't understand these terms as each scenario is set up in such a way that it's obvious what's going on.

Fans of Mike and Rachel will go gaga this season as their romance heats up. Mike and Rachel's relationship goes up and down like a yo-yo which although slightly irritating, keeps fans on their toes. The sexual tension between the pair is undeniable and everyone knows that they're going to get together at some point, but the question of when and how is something elusive. This season is definitely sexier than the first with lots of different character finding themselves in romantic situations. The romance has by no means become a major theme of this series or anything, but it is a steady plot strand that runs throughout.


Harvey is just as sexy as he's always been, flirting with anyone that's caught his eye, but you see a completely different side to Harvey as we learn about his personal life. There is definitely another dimension to Harvey and he proves that is not always work, work, work, but don't worry, hard-as-nails Harvey who doesn't take cr*p from anybody is still there.

The acting is still phenomenal and thoroughly realistic. With emotions running high in this series, each and every actor demonstrates his/her broad range of talents in a variety of different situations. Each character feels so real, and I could totally imagine all of them existing in real life. Harvey, played by Gabriel Macht, is most definitely the star of this show with his cool exterior and suave suits. He is the reason why most people start watching the show and continue to watch it after that.


If you're a fan of good drama and good acting, then this is the series for you. If you loved season 1, then season 2 is a must-watch as things get personal and there are even better cases.

Boulle's Jewels by Francis Boulle.

Title: Boulle's Jewels
Author: Francis Boulle
Genre: Humour, Business
Publisher: Quercus
Publication Date: 8th November 2012
Synopsis: 'Business is a jungle. But I love animals.' Francis Boulle.
Venture Capitalist and CEO Francis Boulle has set out to conquer the world. Armed with strategies not seen since Sun Tzu, philosophies to rival Aristotle, a business head that makes Alan Sugar look like an amateur and thoughts about life that even Confucius would have found enlightening, Francis is king of the new life-gurus. In this must-have little book of Boulleisms, Francis shares his wry observations and indomitable views on business, love, sport, art, family, politics and even pets. He offers expert guidance to help you live your life the Boulle way, even if you've never set foot in Belgravia. Using clever typography, illustrations and amusing diagrams, this is the perfect gift for every budding entrepreneur.




{ Review }

Boulle's Jewels is a funny guide to 'the business of life' by Made in Chelsea star, Francis Boulle or should I say Francis Maximilien Yvan Christophe Boulle (yes, that is his real name). On the show, Francis is someone a lot of people like laughing at and it's usually quite hard to tell whether he's being serious or joking when he does ridiculous things. Francis is an entrepreneur and heir to a diamond business so he's living the high life, but does lots of work too (I think). He's a bit of an oddball, but he's pretty lovable and definitely one of my favourite characters on the show.

I was under the impression that this entire book was dedicated to tips on business and being an entrepreneur but whilst the book starts out like that, after the midway point this book descends into random tips about random things from a list of Francis' favourite films to 'picnic protocol'. Whilst these sections in the second half were equally interesting to read about, I couldn't help but feel a little disappointed that there weren't more 'insightful' tips on the wonderful world of business given that this book is actually categorized under 'Business'. That said, one of the great thing about this book is that you have absolutely no idea what's going to be waiting for you when you turn the page. It was quite exciting to read this book because it is so unpredictable and Francis offers his unique perspective on life, dating, even must-have pets.

If you're not a fan of Made In Chelsea or you don't know who Francis Boulle is then don't bother reading this book - you won't enjoy it or find it funny. This book is definitely aimed at people who already have an idea of who Francis is, the type of life he leads and what his personality is like. The voice of Francis really shines through this book and you get his sort of awkward, sometimes (unintentionally) self-deprecating humour as well as some down-right outrageous statements that you're not quite sure what to make of. Several pages are dedicated to quotes from Francis himself and at several moments he jokes about how this book will be a best-seller and how awesome he is, so this book is a mockery of himself in many ways.

What I was really impressed with, was the general design of the book in terms of look, feel, design, layout etc. The presentation of this book is impeccable with brilliant graphics, photos and diagrams to support the text. The book itself is also really well made as the material used for the cover and the pages is quite thick. General presentation isn't something that is usually that striking with a book, but it's probably one of the key features of this book. Without the fancy graphics this book would be considerably less successful and less interesting to read as the funny pictures/quotes/captions etc. all add to the humour. There's even a handy piece of string attached to the spine to use as a bookmark - useful for when you want to mark your favourite passage!

All in all, this is an interesting and funny read that is perfect for any fans of Made In Chelsea and Francis Boulle. If you've never heard of the show or Francis, then I'd steer clear of this book because you probably won't appreciate the humour or the strange tips quite as much. Whilst the advice given in this book is pretty funny at times, some of it is actually useful advice for entrepreneurs once you've stripped away the comedy. There are a few life lessons to be learnt from this book and if you can learn those whilst having a good laugh then this book's done pretty well. You can fly through this book pretty quickly and it's a nice light hearted read. There isn't actually all that much text in this book as a lot of page space is dedicated to fancy fonts, block lettering and pictures or diagrams. If you love Made in Chelsea and/or Francis Boulle, like good looking book and having a laugh, then this is a book I'd definitely recommend.

Rick Yancey Interview.

A while back I was given the opportunity to take part in an interview with Rick Yancey. I'm part of the Spinebreakers programme with Penguin UK so I was invited to his UK publicity event but beforehand, the Spinebreakers got to meet him and ask a few questions. I look horribly awkward and weird in this video and I still had braces (cry), but who cares, I got to meet Rick Yancey!! Sadly we only got to ask one question each, but the answers are all very interesting so give it a watch! Can you guess which one is me?

I also got a free signed copy of The 5th Wave for coming along to his event which is AWESOME.

After Earth. 

Any film with Will Smith in it comes with pretty high expectations, but unfortunately, After Earth did not live up to its expected glory. This piece of 'sci-fi' is basically an hour and a half of watching Jayden Smith wandering around Earth by himself in an attempt to retrieve a beacon that will a send a signal to his home planet after he and his injured father (Will Smith) crash landed on the now inhabitable Earth.


There are basically only two characters in this film, the two played by Will Smith and Jayden Smith, though, I'd say around an hour of screen time is dedicated to Jayden Smith alone - big mistake. Whoever decided that Jayden Smith was right for the role of Kitai needs to be fired. He was 100% not mature enough for this role and did not have what it takes to sustain over an hour of screen time by himself. His facial expression did not really change throughout the entire movie and it appears that Jayden Smith only has one face - that of a pathetic puppy. Actually no. That's an insult to pathetic puppies. Jayden Smith did not have the right sort of voice, physique or talent. Has his voice even broken? It didn't sound like it. He spoke with a pre-pubescent squeak for the entirety of the film which was highly irritating, but also kinda hilarious. Will Smith also disappointed me in this film. There wasn't anything wrong, per say, with his acting, but he also seemed to be suffering from single-facial-expression syndrome with his only expression being severe. Everything that came out of Will Smith's mouth was spoken in a deadly serious tone and given that the stuff he was saying was melodramatic and cliche, it was hard not to laugh. To make matters worse, neither character is likable in the slightest and the combination of bad acting and unlikable characters meant there's little going for this film.


Perhaps this film could've been redeemed if it had had the amazing CGI effects that one would expect from a movie such as this. The effects were laughable really. At the beginning, this film had the look of a terrible Star Wars remake, the middle, a terrible Walking with Dinosaurs remake, the ending, some sort of Starship Troopers remake. The technology characters used and the general scenery were unimpressive. At points where the camera panned over Earth or space there was nothing particularly spectacular to look at and at one point it appeared that Will Smith was using some sort of iPad device that promptly rolled up as a piece of cloth. The world created in this film left no lasting impression on me and by the end of the week I'll probably have forgotten everything about this film.


All in all, this film combines awful acting with a feeble plot line and laughable CGI effects. I would not recommend this film in the slightest as this is possibly the worst sci-fi film of the decade.