A POTENTIAL HIATUS?

I am off on holiday for two weeks as of tomorrow! (A long awaited and deserved holiday I might add). This may mean that I will be posting a little less than usual - however, I do have some plans to post some photography and a couple of book reviews if I manage to finish my holiday reads. Anything that is holiday related will be posted under the title 'My Big Fat Greek Holiday' - if there isn't anything under that title, that means that I'm not able to post while I'm away (sorry if that's the case!).

All that's left to say is adiós amigos!

FRIDAY FILM NIGHT - THE WORLD'S END REVIEW

THIS REVIEW DOES NOT CONTAIN SPOILERS

So last night, I went to see the midnight screening of The World's End - in actual fact, one of my local cinemas was showing the entire 'Cornetto Trilogy' (which, for those who don't know, consists of Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, and finally The World's End) in a back-to-back screening. You can imagine, then, how pleased I was to see that the entire trilogy was being shown considering that Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz are among my favourite films. So that leads us to the question - did the finale of the trilogy live up to its predecessors?

To give the review a bit of context, here is the synopsis of the film taken from the website Rotten Tomatoes...
" In "The World's End," 20 years after attempting an epic pub crawl, five childhood friends reunite when one of them becomes hellbent on trying the drinking marathon again. They are convinced to stage an encore by Gary King (Simon Pegg), a 40-year-old man trapped at the cigarette end of his teens, who drags his reluctant pals to their hometown and once again attempts to reach the fabled pub - The World's End. As they attempt to reconcile the past and present, they realize the real struggle is for the future, not just theirs but humankind's. Reaching The World's End is the least of their worries."

So that's the basic plot of the film. I'm not going to give anything away other than that, but what I will say is that the tone of the final film is definitely different from Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz. There are many more moments where the comedy is somewhat sedated (similarly to the point in SOTD where the zombies manage to get into the Winchester) and character development takes centre stage. Despite this slight alteration, the film is still very funny - I particularly found Oliver or 'O-Man', who is played by Martin Freeman, to be one of the more funny characters as many of his lines are delivered in an almost deadpan manner. As per usual, Simon Pegg and Nick Frost's characters were suitably hilarious - however, in this film their roles are reversed somewhat. In the previous two films, Pegg plays the more savvy and quick-witted of the duo whereas Frost portrays the more imbecilic companion. In The World's End, however, Pegg's character Gary is hell-bent on having a good time (often with the aid of alcohol) who contrasts to Frost's Andy who is a stuck-up teetotal who wishes to have nothing to do with Gary's plans to retry the fabled Golden Mile.

As you might expect from a Wright/Pegg film, the script is top notch. There are a couple of little references to the previous films which help to cement the film's place in the trilogy while creating comedy, but it is the new jokes that are hysterical - during the climax there are moments of conversation that are very funny. That being said, I did think that the script was perhaps a little less funny than Shaun of the Dead (which I have seen nigh on ten times and still find hilarious) - but I'm probably biased, because SOTD has always been my favorite of the previous installations in the trilogy.

Finally, the cinematography in The World's End is definitely worth a mention - the transitions between scenes are done very well and there are some nice shots in the film (in more ways than one) which are very reminiscent of Wright's other films, namely the other films in the Cornetto trilogy.

So to summarise this review, I found The World's End to be an ending to the trilogy that has spanned almost ten years that is worthy of its place. It is a thoroughly enjoyable film, although the ending is a little bittersweet (and not just because it is the finale of the beloved Cornetto trilogy). I would definitely recommended it, but most especially to fans of Shaun of The Dead and Hot Fuzz.

To wrap up, here is the trailer for the film...

The World's End Poster was taken from:

http://media.sfx.co.uk/files/2013/05/The-Worlds-End-poster.jpg

MAKE-UP MONDAY - TOP FIVE SUMMER BEAUTY PRODUCTS

I decided to pick out some of my favourite summer products to talk about - inspired by the surprisingly beautiful British weather that we've been having at the moment! So, without further ado, here are my top five summer beauty products...

RIMMEL SALON PRO BY KATE NAIL POLISH IN HIP HOP - £4.49

I've been on the lookout for a nice bright coral colour for a while now, and this polish from Rimmel caught my eye while I was shopping around. Hip Hop is a lovely reddish-orange shade which is perfect for the summer months. The gel-like consistency of this particular range makes it easy to get opaque colour without applying too many layers of polish. While it says on the back of the bottle that the colour lasts for up to ten days, I did find that the polish began to chip after two or three days - however, I feel that the price of the product justifies this somewhat.

CLINIQUE MOISTURE SURGE TINTED MOISTURISER - £22.00

I've had this tinted moisturiser for a while now, and it is particularly good for the summer months - it is both lightweight and moisturising (as the product name suggests). The finish of the product is very sheer and the coverage is quite limited - any blemishes would need to be covered up with concealer and the finish of the product may not be ideal for those with oily skin. Personally, this is not a problem for me, and I find the aspects of the foundation to be ideal for summer - it gives enough coverage without melting off the skin in the heat! In addition, the tinted moisturiser contains SPF 15, so it provides some protection for the skin in the hot weather.

RIMMEL LONDON DAY TO NIGHT MASCARA IN BLACK/BROWN - £7.99

Another Rimmel product here! For the summer I find that the lengthening wand on this mascara is the better of the two - it gives much more natural looking results and doesn't add as much volume to the lash-line as the volumising wand does. I chose to feature this product over my usual favourite mascara (Clinique High Impact Mascara) because it is easier to apply without smudging and gives a much more natural finish, which I think is more preferable for the summer. I personally prefer to wear much less makeup when it's hot, and this mascara adds definition without looking overbearing.

SOAP AND GLORY ARCHERY BROW TINT AND PENCIL IN LOVE IS BLONDE - £10.00

Instead of wearing eyeliner to add definition to my face, I prefer to use brow products. Last summer, I used the famed Rimmel eyebrow pencil but I found that it was too red-toned for me. By contrast, this brow product by Soap and Glory has little or no red tones in it at all - it is an ash blonde shade with tones of grey and khaki in the pencil. While that sounds rather odd, the result is that the pencil gives a very natural result and matches the colour of my brows perfectly. The other end of the pencil is a brow tint that, when used on its own, provides very subtle definition for those who prefer much more natural looking brows.

MAC TINTED LIPGLASS IN PINK LEMONADE - £14.00

This lipgloss is great for the summer because of its beautiful colour - in the tube it looks quite bright, but on the lips it becomes more sheer. The shade Pink Lemonade is almost like a flamingo pink colour, which works really well in the summer. While I do really like this product, it is not without its negatives - firstly, at £14 it is expensive for a lipgloss and is understandably out of budget for some. The second issue is that the consistency of the lip gloss is a little sticky - I don't find this much of a problem, but I can imagine that some people may dislike this. 

Above: a swatch of MAC's Pink Lemonade Lipglass

So there you have it - my top five beauty products for the summer months. I will put the links to websites where you can buy the products from if you are interested in purchasing them below. 

- Kate Shortt -

Rimmel Salon Pro Nail Polish:

 http://www.boots.com/en/Rimmel-Salon-Pro-by-Kate-Nail-Polish_1314252/

Clinique Moisture Surge Tinted Moisturiser: http://www.clinique.co.uk/product/1599/15635/Makeup/Foundations/Moisture-Surge-Tinted-Moisturizer-SPF-15/index.tmpl

Rimmel Day to Night Mascara:

http://www.boots.com/en/Rimmel-Day-2-Night-Mascara_1208321/

Soap and Glory Archery Brow Pencil:

http://www.boots.com/en/Soap-Glory%C2%99-Archery%C2%99-Brow-Tint-and-Pencil_1279313/

MAC Tinted Lipglass:

http://www.maccosmetics.co.uk/product/shaded/166/309/Products/Lips/Lipglass/Tinted-Lipglass/index.tmpl

AND SO IT BEGINS...

Welcome to my blog!
I'll do a little introduction for my first ever post...
My name is Kathryn Shortt (although I'm more commonly known as either Katy or Kate, depending on who's addressing me). I am currently studying English Literature, Psychology, Geography, and Graphic Design. My interests include film and television, books, beauty, and general geekery - expect to find many a fandom reference in my posts. (On the subject of fandoms, you can also find me on Tumblr - http://theboffinonbakerstreet.tumblr.com/)

That's all I can really think of writing about for now...

- Kate Shortt -

UPDATE:
You can now follow me on Bloglovin!
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