Comments for Car Rentals

Comment on The Motorcycle Diaries (Widescreen Edition) by Jerika

Jerika — Sat, 05 May 2012 05:30:44 +0000

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful

Contrary to the review below..., June 20, 2005

Jerika (9th circle) -

This review is from: The Motorcycle Diaries (Widescreen Edition) (DVD)

...I want to offer an almost-opposite reaction. Yes, I admit I went into the theater not knowing a) much at all about Che Guevara, or b) that the film was even about Che. I was mesmerized all the way through, by the subtle messages about the plight of working-class Latin Americans, by the sweeping landscapes and by the fantastic performances. Once I (finally) figured out that the Ernesto Guevara in this film was indeed *the* Ernesto Guevara, I thought, "How brilliant." It doesn't set out to portray him as a saint (as a previous reviewer said), or as a villain-in-the-making. It's a very rare thing in cinema, or history studies in general: a portrait of a man as a man. What you make of the path Che later chose as a result of these experiences is a different matter entirely, and one frankly not related to this film at all.

Some have cried, "Would you enjoy a movie that portrayed a young Hitler sympathetically?" My answer: a) that's really not an accurate comparison, and b) maybe, if it were this well written and acted and filmed. Imagine the story of the Beer Hall Putsch told in such a way that we really got into the youthful main character's mind to discover its workings and motivations. It wouldn't excuse what he did, but explain it in a more insightful way than the boiled-down mush we are served in our history books. This is what cinema should be used for more often.

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Comment on The Motorcycle Diaries (Widescreen Edition) by B. Merritt "filmreviewstew.com"

B. Merritt "filmreviewstew.com" — Sat, 05 May 2012 04:35:34 +0000

42 of 52 people found the following review helpful

A Myopic Look at an Iconic Figure, November 27, 2005

B. Merritt "filmreviewstew.com" (WWW.FILMREVIEWSTEW.COM, Pacific Grove, California United States) -

This review is from: The Motorcycle Diaries (Widescreen Edition) (DVD)

This is a tough review to write because of the subject matter we're dealing with: a militant revolutionary who became Castro's right-hand man during the 1959 Cuban revolt. But here in THE MOTORCYCLE DIARIES film, we don't see this man; we see instead the formation of the person whom this man (Ernesto "Che" Guevara played by the talented Gael García Bernal)would become. He's a young idealist living in South America when he and a friend (Alberto Granado played by up-and-coming actor Rodrigo de la Serna) decide to take a road trip across the continent before bellying down into their chosen carriers in medicine.

The film succeeds in giving us a very myopic view of these two men: Guevara for the initial changes he begins to go through as he witnesses injustices to the low and poor; Granado for his love of women and grudging dedication to Guevara. We travel with them on a 1939 Norton 500 motorcycle (my hat's off to the two actors who had to ACTUALLY learn to ride one of these behemoths!) as they argue with each other over money, their deficient form of transportation, and Guevara's unflinching honesty when asked delicate questions (this is brought into focus when they first meet a man - who looks very German - in a small village and asks Che and Granado to look at a lump on his neck, which Granado diagnoses as a cyst but Che calls a tumor).

The cinematography was done exceptionally well on a small budget. The beauty of Machu Picchu, the green forests of Peru, the nothingness of various deserts, all added great visuals for the viewer.

The film's faults lay with its omissions. Yes, Che was a thinking man. Yes, Che was concerned with humanity as a whole. But Che was also somewhat of a bigot. He didn't like blacks, jews, and homosexuals (read the book THE MOTORCYCLE DIARIES). So when he shows his concern for lepers in a colony along the Amazon River, we're only see a part of this complex man. Granted, for a film you need to have your audience empathize with the main character, but this also pulls us into the shallow end of the depths that this man was. The convoluted sections of Che's life might have added an extra level of understanding for film viewers, especially those who have knowledge of his later life when he becomes an executioner of spies and deserters, quite a dichotomy compared to the hippocratic oath he took when becoming a doctor - the oath basically promising to "do no harm."

But, again, I can understand why the film makers decided to omit these sections. We are, after all, seeing only the early life of Che, a fomenting of ideas that would change his life forever. But I think we have to be careful when looking at such a potentially volatile subject and controversial man, and only showing the "sunnier" side of Che to a new generation of movie-goers. More research is needed if one really wishes to understand the levels of Che.

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Comment on The Motorcycle Diaries (Widescreen Edition) by Robert Moore

Robert Moore — Sat, 05 May 2012 04:20:24 +0000

252 of 275 people found the following review helpful

"On the Road" with Che Guevara, October 3, 2004

Robert Moore (Chicago, IL USA) -

As most potential viewers know, this film is based on diaries and letters to home written by Ernesto "Che" Guevara during a motorcycle and foot tour of a significant portion of South America during the early 1950s, years before Guevara achieved international renown as a Communist and Latino revolutionary. Thus, the film functions as an attempt to get at the heart of the person who preceded the myth. The film is therefore difficult to judge as pure cinema. Is this, on its own merits, a great film? Or is it a great film about Che Guevara? Interestingly, the person I saw this film with knew absolutely nothing about the subject of the film before it started, and did not connect Ernesto Guevara with Che Guevara until very late in the film. Her reaction was interesting. Until she realized that it was about Che, she says that she considered it a decent but only slightly above average "road" picture, but it gained considerably in her estimation once she realized who the film was about. I think she was correct, and I would agree with those who feel that what merits the film has depends to some degree on who the film is about. If Ernesto hadn't become Che, it would be a good film but of considerably less interest than it is.

The film does a good job of rooting Che's eventual concern with the liberation of the oppressed by depicting his broad and constant encounters with everyday people throughout the continent. Camus wrote that it was important to side with the victims and not the executioners, and in his travels Ernesto spends most of his time with the victims. His near-epic exposure to the continent clearly condition his sympathies and inform his vision. At the end of the film it is easy to understand why Che chose a life dedicated to aiding the oppressed in Cuba and elsewhere. The great question left unanswered, and the one reason one can find Che's life morally troubling, is why he felt that the causes he espoused demanded a violent, military response. Why follow in the steps of Trotsky and Lenin rather than Gandhi? Apart from a single line which merely hints that Che felt violence might be necessary, the film doesn't come anywhere close to answering this question.

In many ways, the star of the film is the South American continent. I have seen many films over the years set in one corner of the continent or another, but none provided a panoramic view. This film, however, by swinging through Argentina, Chile, Peru, Columbia, and Venezuela provides a graphic impression of the continent's immense geographical diversity, expanse, and enormous beautiful. I don't think it would be possible to see this film without a deep urge to visit the land. The scene shot in Machu Picchu reveals the incredible beauty of the site better than anything else I have ever seen.

Gael Garcia Bernal is a remarkably handsome, talented young actor, formerly best known for one of the two young men in Y TU MAMA TAMBIEN, and is outstanding in portraying the young Che Guevara. One suspects that his days as an actor in primarily Latin productions is close to an end, his next several projects originating in Hollywood. Rodrigo De la Serna does not have the enormous charisma of Bernal, but he more than holds his own in the film. The cast is rounded out by a large roster of professional and amateur performers.

Che Guevara is such a controversial figure that this film could elicit a host of differing responses. How one will respond to this film will be deeply conditioned by how one views him. But I do think that it is a film that virtually every viewer will respond to with great interest, and I defy anyone not to find the remarkable landscapes anything short of stunning.

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Comment on GPS Map of Central America by Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 01 May 2012 04:15:46 +0000

Worked great in Nicaragua, February 12, 2012

Michael Pee -

Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)

This review is from: GPS Map of Central America (Electronics)

I just got back from Nicaragua and this thing worked brilliantly. Turn-by-turn was flawless in the rural areas and the streets were more accurate than Google Earth (i did not know that was possible). The only issues we had where in Managua. The turn-by-turn got a little confused and recalculated a couple of times going to the airport and coming from the airport but we were able to work with it and it got us to our destinations no worse for wear (although 30 min later than it should have).

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Comment on The Travel Detective: How to Get the Best Service and the Best Deals from Airlines, Hotels, Cruise Ships, and Car Rental Agencies by Anonymous

Anonymous — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 05:42:23 +0000

97 of 114 people found the following review helpful

A Must Have for the Intelligent Traveller, May 2, 2001

Heidi Hyndman (Charlottetown, PE Canada) -

This review is from: The Travel Detective: How to Get the Best Service and the Best Deals from Airlines, Hotels, Cruise Ships, and Car Rental Agencies (Paperback)

While returning from Florida a week ago, via a major airline, I was almost driven to air rage when the passenger ahead of me fully reclined his chair. My legs were practically around my neck and my tray table lodged in my abdomen. I decided that I would NEVER again fly this airline and that I would SEARCH for a book that had the insider information that I needed to get a better seat on a plane. This book is that and soooooo much more. DETAILED seat information on specific planes was just the beginning. I advise reading with a hightlighter as there is a lot of information to digest. He also includes a great reference section at the end with web sites, phone numbers, etc. For those who like to take an active part in travel plans, this book is a must read..........otherwise, call your travel agent and hope for the best!

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Comment on The Travel Detective: How to Get the Best Service and the Best Deals from Airlines, Hotels, Cruise Ships, and Car Rental Agencies by Heidi Hyndman

Heidi Hyndman — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 05:03:35 +0000

36 of 38 people found the following review helpful

95% worthless, April 15, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: The Travel Detective: How to Get the Best Service and the Best Deals from Airlines, Hotels, Cruise Ships, and Car Rental Agencies (Paperback)

Given the massive changes in airline policies and security since 9/11, the vast majority of the advice in this book is no longer applicable. Greenberg focuses so much on flying - almost 240 of the book's 375 or so pages of content - that you'd think there was nothing more to travel than the flight. There's also a bizarre jump from an abbreviated pet-friendly lodging section (a whopping two paragraphs) smack into the middle of a discussion on how to get the best deal on a hotel room. Clearly, whoever edited this cut a big chunk out, and deprived the reader of who-knows-how-much information. There are some useful tips and hints in here, but not enough to justify owning it.

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Comment on The Travel Detective: How to Get the Best Service and the Best Deals from Airlines, Hotels, Cruise Ships, and Car Rental Agencies by Hoke

Hoke — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 04:26:32 +0000

87 of 97 people found the following review helpful

Won't save a cent but could cost you a bundle, August 13, 2005

Hoke (USA) -

This review is from: The Travel Detective: How to Get the Best Service and the Best Deals from Airlines, Hotels, Cruise Ships, and Car Rental Agencies (Paperback)

As a seasoned traveler and having worked at a large hotel as Front Desk Manager I have to say most of what is given in this book is worthless. In fact if you try some of his "tactics" in a normal hotel you might get stuck with a hefty bill. I read this book to see how scammers might try to take advantage of my staff. None of my staff ever fell for any of what he suggests and many have tried.

Someone tried the double reservation game with us when we were fully booked. It ended up costing him two nights for both reservations. He tried to not pay and called his credit card to complain about it. Surprisingly the credit card company sided with us on that one. Hotels, as everyone else in the tourism industry, are onto the little scams this guy tries to put out as tips. Also reservations are a form of contract and depending on the state can be hard to break.

His advice on airlines was remedial at best even before 9/11. Now it is completely useless. I read a one page article on airline tips in a Reader's Digest and it had more practical advice.

You can be pretty sure that if you try any of these tactics you will not get an upgrade of any sort. More likely the staff will be onto you and look at you distrustfully for the duration of your travels with that company. If you want to insure bad seats, bad rooms, and bad everything else then try these tactics. Sometimes a bad customer is not worth having. On several occasions I "fired" guests. This is a good guide to making that happen. If you are a true frequent traveler then you should be getting perks already as a valued customer. You won't need this.

This author tries to paint travel industry professionals as some sort of enemy. It is this guy and his tricks that make travelers look bad and eventually cost the industry so much that they end reward programs for honest travelers. The people in this industry work exceptionally hard. They have bad hours, work holidays, and receive poor pay. The worst part of it is dealing with jerks like this and people that take out unrelated travel frustrations that people encounter. They put up with all this and are expected to say thank you and smile.

This is their job and they know it, but people like this author and his "advice" are not acceptable.

Here are a few tips on hotels that I hope you will find useful:

1. Your best general rate is going to be available via internet reservations.
2. Online discounters get a good mark up on the rooms they book for you. The hotel gets a very low rate and will give you a "run of house room" this means they will give you whatever is available. Even if you call and get a confirmed reservation for a certain type of room the hotel can change it at will as that is in the agreement with the discount broker. The discount broker is actually the contracted guest, not you.
3. Check the local area out on the web and find out what businesses frequent the area. If you have ever purchased a product of theirs you can justifiably claim you are a buyer and do business with them, the hotel may book you at their negotiated rates. I would leave out the fact that you purchase relatively small quantities.
4. Hotel room rates fluctuate on expected vacancy. The more filled the hotel the more likely they are to charge you their "rack" rate. This is their full price, every other rate is a discount off of this rate.
5. If the hotel is charging rack rate because they are expected to be fully booked then go to your travel agent. Your travel agent will be able to get you a better rate for this instance only. Otherwise avoid your travel agent at all costs.
6. Always always get confirmation numbers and if absolutely necessary get a faxed or e-mailed confirmation letter and check the dates thoroughly. A lot of people find out they were booked for the wrong days.
7. The more you call the more likely someone will screw up your reservation. Know what you want in advance and put your requests in all at one time. If you start to annoy the reservationist they may screw up your reservation. The reservationist likely won't be at the hotel when you show up and things are screwed up.
8. Requests for adjoining rooms can be exceptionally difficult. Most hotels will try to accomodate requests like this but will rarely guarantee them.
9. Most business-class rooms have special lounges or amenities available during business days only. On the weekends these services may not be offered.
10. Hotels offer a room to stay in. Unless you are paying sky high rates don't expect a palace. More likely you are paying for the location. If you are booking a downtown hotel in any medium sized city or larger expect to pay seperately for parking. Almost no hotel can afford a parking structure in a city. The property taxes alone would force you to pay an unimaginable rate. Ask how much parking... Read more

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Comment on How to Save Big Money on Car Rentals: Uncovering the Secrets They Don’t Want You to Know by hilobilly

hilobilly — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 18:58:13 +0000

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

didn't learn anything new, April 23, 2010

hilobilly -

Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)

This review is from: How to Save Big Money on Car Rentals: Uncovering the Secrets They Don't Want You to Know (Paperback)

was especially disappointed when the question of whether to get insurance or not was not definitively answered. however, the book was delivered on time as promised by the seller.

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Comment on Highland 35036 Black Universal Car Roof Top Basket Carrier by Guy Stryder

Guy Stryder — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 19:36:03 +0000

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

Everything I expected... for the price, December 31, 2009

Guy Stryder -

Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)

This review is from: Highland 35036 Black Universal Car Roof Top Basket Carrier (Misc.)

This rack will serve my purpose, which is a single journey across the country. If it lasts longer than that, then all the better.

The weak spot is the plastic feet, which both support the rack and are the attachment for the straps. In the long run, I will devise a stronger substitute for these. In the short run, an extra ratchet strap ($5) around the whole rack, through the two back doors and under the roof will give me all the extra security I need, just in case.

Other than that, construction is good. Simple but strong enough hollow square bars, attached by sufficiently beefy bolts and lock nuts.

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Comment on Highland 35036 Black Universal Car Roof Top Basket Carrier by M. Tilelli

M. Tilelli — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 18:37:16 +0000

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

Great job for a great price, January 28, 2008

M. Tilelli (Utah, USA) -

Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)

This review is from: Highland 35036 Black Universal Car Roof Top Basket Carrier (Misc.)

It works as it should. The straps stay tight during the whole trip. The rubber pads aren't the tightest fit on the feet but that just is an issue when the rack is stored. Not a big deal but worth mentioning so you can make sure they are there before putting it on the car. Very light weight and sturdy.

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