Movie Review: Resident Evil: Retribution

Movie: Resident Evil: Retribution (also: Resident Evil 5)
Genres: Horror, Action, Thriller, Sci-Fi
Runtime: about 96 minutes
Format: 2D and 3D
Rated: R
Studio: Constantin Film
Country: USA
Language: English
Official Website: http://www.residentevil-movie.com/site/

Director: Paul W. S. Anderson
Producers: Paul W. S. Anderson, Jeremy Bolt, Don Carmody, Samuel Hadida, Robert Kulzer
Writer: Paul W. S. Anderson
Cast: Milla Jovovich, Michelle Rodriguez, Kevin Durand, Sienna Guillory, Shawn Roberts, Aryana Engineer, Colin Salmon, Johann Urb, Boris Kodjoe, Li Bingbing.

Release Date: September 14, 2012
Find it: At your local Cinema
Scores:

Metacritic: 39/100 (critics); 5.6/10 (users)
Rotten Tomatoes: 27% (critics); 56% (users)

My Rating: ★★☆☆☆

Hey everybody, let's play "name that quote," shall we? Can you name which character said this particular line and which of the Resident Evil movies is it from?

"You are all going to die down here!"

Well, if you said "The Red Queen, Resident Evil 1," you are CORRECT!! Congratulations! You are either a fan of the movie franchise or well acquainted with your pop culture.

If your answer was "The Red Queen, Resident Evil: Retribution (or RE: 5)," you are most certainly CORRECT as well. Congratulations! You have officially been tortured at the movie theater.

Review: A Hidden Fire by Elizabeth Hunter

Title: A Hidden Fire
Series: Elemental Mysteries, Book 1
Author: Elizabeth Hunter
Publisher: E. Hunter
Length: 423 Pages
Publication Date: October 13, 2011
Available Formats: Paperback, Kindle Edition, eBook
Source: Bought for Free
My Rating: ★★★¾☆☆
Get it @: Amazon | Book Depository | Barnes & Noble | Smashwords | Goodreads
Worth Noted: As off January 5, 2013 the book remains free in both Amazon and Smashwords.

Book Description:

"No secret stays hidden forever."

A phone call from an old friend sets Dr. Giovanni Vecchio back on the path of a mystery he'd abandoned years before. He never expected a young librarian could hold the key to the search, nor could he have expected the danger she would attract. Now he and Beatrice De Novo will follow a twisted maze that leads from the archives of a university library, through the fires of Renaissance Florence, and toward a confrontation they never could have predicted.

A Hidden Fire is a paranormal mystery/romance for adult readers. It is the first book in the Elemental Mysteries Series.

I read this novel as part of Katie's Kick'n It Free-Style at Gotta Have Paranormal with a Kick. The challenge consisted of four groups of readers, each one with a randomly assigned book (that had been previously suggested). The books had to be free eBook downloads from the major book selling sites (mostly Amazon and B&N). My team, Feisty Femme Fatales, was assigned A Hidden Fire. NOTE: The tallies are up and our book won the challenge, it was the book with the overall best rating!!

I enjoyed the story, the author managed to refresh a concept that has, lately, become a bit overdone; I tip my hat to her for achieving this. It has many memorable characters in its roaster. Beatrice (or B, as she prefers to be called) is a strong female character and a great lead to the story. Gio is, well, he is complicated... Gio begins as a strong character, but there is one particular moment after which my perspective on him changes 180°. Among the rest of the characters we have Carwyn, one of Gio's best vampire friend, -and in my honest opinion- one of the best characters of the series. Did I mention he is a priest? Yup, he is both a priest and a vampire with a particular taste for Hawaiian shirts. Other great characters include Isadora (Beatrice's grandmother) and Caspar (Gio's butler/son/human best friend/ehh... you get the picture).