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[oneillsophieoneill]

Babak Anvari is the reason I couldn’t sleep for THREE WHOLE DAYS! And other reasons why Under The Shadow is just that good.

In his directorial debut, Babak Anvari delivers with a terrifying look into the isolating, terror-inducing life of a mother and daughter in Tehran during the height of the Iran-Iraq war. The film provides a disturbingly intimate look into the psychological toll on Shideh’s mental state. Shideh, our protagonist, is a former medical student taking care of her young daughter Dorsa while her husband is serving in the army as a doctor. What follows is an hour and twenty-four minutes of unrivalled tension and anxiety, cruelly broken by well-timed jump scares, shocking creatures, and pure terror.

 The Djinn’s portrayal alone is enough to elicit fear from any horror lover. The spirit is disturbing, whether as a ghostly chador or a creepy stranger standing in your room at night. Its appearances are both expected but still a surprise- Anvari amps up your dread, he increases the tension through the acting and camera angles.

The second element to its success is the look into the harrowing mental exhaustion we see Shideh suffer. Throughout we cannot tell just what is causing all the horrors we see- is it a Djinn? Or is it a country’s superstitions, political oppression and regular bombings picking away at her sanity as she tries to keep her daughter safe while becoming more and more isolated as neighbours flee for safety away- an action she doesn’t want to take.

 Anvari keeps the terror going throughout. The Djinn’s arrival coincides with the arrival of an unexploded missile piercing the apartment complex. The image of Shideh attempting to revive her neighbour in front of it leaves a haunting image on your mind and represents just how close the danger is to our protagonist. The disturbing nightmares muddle with reality and pour out Shideh’s own fears onto centre stage.

 The thing you notice most about the film is how unnerving the scenes can be. When Shideh performs her usual workout in the dead of night we cannot help but be disturbed by what appears to be her sanity, clearly slipping away. The way that Anvari shoots the main characters evokes vulnerability. They always appear to be isolated and small, even when they are with others, they have no one else that they can trust.

 Aside from the director the stellar cast is also deserving of praise. Narges Rashidi kills it as woman struggling the maintain any sense of normalcy with the regular incursions of shells and evil spirits. The scene when Shideh is doing her fitness routine without the tape playing late at night is nothing short of unnerving perfection from Rashidi. Even the young Avin Manshadi shows off her talent as the young girl Dorsa.

 This film is an absolute jaw-dropping masterpiece in horror. From the first air raid to terrifying visits from our least favourite floating chador we see Anvari talent at blending themes of oppression and fear into a nerve-wracking experience perfect for any horror fan or sadistic monster looking to make their friends suffer. I’m sure you’ll love it or fear it, just don’t ask me about the ending. I ran away before that part.

[oneillsophieoneill]

Festen: Disfunction, Secrets, and Dogme 95

Thomas Vinterberg’s darkly comedic film delves into the explosive 60th birthday of Helge, the family patriarch. The film starts as an intimate and humorous look into a chaotic family, still grieving after the death of their sister. The films then evolves into a battle against the tide as Michael fights to force his family to recognise the abuse he has suffered.

           Vinterberg’s signature manifesto- Dogme 95- calls for the basics. Natural lighting, no special effects, and basic equipment.it throws away Hollywood’s habit of blowing millions on the most advanced tech the industry has and instead focuses on crafting a good story.

           The films fast-paced nature is aided by its cinematography. The hand-held camera flies from one character to the next, it rapidly switches angles and pushes the momentum forward. It creates the hectic atmosphere needed to convey the dysfunction of this family while managing to avoid a turning into a blurry mess. The director also keeps it simple with his sound. There is no background score to amp up the emotions or sound effects so that a lit cigarette of car horn sound perfect. The effect, just like with the camera, is a naturalistic and immersive experience that you can easily assume is just a family reunion and not a film.

           But a director’s skill with a camera alone cannot make a movie. Which is why the plot is just as good. The emotional thrill ride delights us, horrifies us, and shocks us. The first half hour we are lulled into assuming it is the sister’s suicide that has caused the most strife and that what we are watching is, presumably, a family learning to cope together. Instead, we’re treated with a gut punch as Christian reveals the sexual abuse he suffered from his father. Just as he room is shocked into silence so are we. Christian’s siblings are shocked when they hear the news. Despite Helene knowing it to be true she cannot bare to admit it, while her rebellious brother lashes out in anger over the accusations. It is in fact the staff at the hotel that believe him and the head chef that orders the staff to hide the car keys and force everyone to stay watch. Unlike family they are more willing to see Helge sins or perhaps why they are able to see it is because the know how it feels to be treated badly. Throughout we see how Michael and the other guests treat the staff with little respect and while we never see Helge alone with staff it is all too easy to wonder if he has abused or harassed them.

                       This film is as much of a roller-coaster as it is a cinematic masterpiece. Its accolades are well-earned, and the sensitive subject matter is handled with the right blend of drama and comedy. This film is fresh and rebellious compared to many of the English-language dramas of the time and is without doubt a film I highly recommend.

[oneillsophieoneill]

Declare Independence- Bjork once again leaves us scratching our heads

I’ll be the first to admit, Bjork is a bit weird. Whether she’s in love with a cat or showing us robots falling in love, Bjork never fails to surprise us with her unique style and beliefs. This time, Bjork and long-time collaborator and director Mark Gendry deliver a loud punk-rock anthem with an abstract music video that boasts her signature blend of weird imagery and political subtext.

 Taking place within an industrial warehouse, we see Bjork telling the impressionable teens, tied together by their helmets, to “Declare Independence” as they sway about individually. As the song continues, the beat intensifies and the rhythm becoming more and more manic, the teens swaying evolves into synchronised jumping as the white strings moving throughout the room are splattered with more and more colourful paint like a tie-dye uprising.

 The mixture of colours, jumping, the rapid cuts to the machines moving and painting the rope create this manic juxtaposition between chaos and order. The intensity, the anger builds and builds until you begin to expect violence to break out. That rebellion never happens though and neither does the coveted independence. Instead, the impressionable teens never act their own, they never even break free of the strings they are attached to. Despite her lyrics it seems that all Bjork is doing is turning them into her minions. This whole concept reminds me of an advertising scheme. It’s like a razor company bringing up female empowerment and body positivity to sell their product even though they’re still to cowardly to show real body hair onscreen.

 You can argue either that Bjork is creating soldiers for her cause- or- inspiring people to declare their independence and celebrate individuality. Bjork has often used this song to lend support to places around the world looking for independence, from Catalonia to Tibet to Kosovo. In fact, the flags worn by Bjork and the foot soldiers are those of Greenland and the Faroe Islands, both a part of Denmark which her native Iceland used to be a part of.

It constantly reminds you of the very ethos of punk. Loud, aggressive and rebellious, with enough of Bjork and director Mark Gendry’s combined signature blend of the abstract, the weird, and the thought provoking, to make you not only see the message of independence but also question whether we are truly seeing this or the manipulation of this belief for another form of control.

[oneillsophieoneill]

The Handmaiden (2016): Korean Gothic Lesbians. What More Could You Want?

The Handmaiden is an incredible film. Whether we looking at the plot, the cinematography, or any other part of it. Park Chan-wook’s masterpiece tells the story of a young Korean pickpocket involved in an elaborate plot to defraud a Japanese heiress, based on the novel ‘Fingersmith’ by Sarah Waters. While the plot appears to be straight-forward, as it progresses our understanding begins to unravel. What we first saw as a complete jigsaw puzzle completely warps into an unfinished mosaic. Park then fills it in revealing it to be far bigger and more intriguing with every twist and turn.

The film is full of plot twists itself, but Park avoids staleness. The first plot twist shakes everything we know and leaves us questioning who is conning who? The rest provide us with a deeper insight into the mind of the heiress, Hideko, and shows us just how much we didn’t even question about her actions before. The acting in the film as well is phenomenal, Kim Tae-ri and Kim Min-hee’s chemistry together is evident. Both are able to show their character’s innocence, anger, cunning, passion and fierce devotion to each other. Even Kim Hae-sook as the minor character Sasaki is an unnerving presence perfect at setting the gothic atmosphere that permeates through every scene.

The romance at the centre of the film is genuine and passionate. It is one of my favourite lesbian films because of the effort that Park puts into showing the love they have and to see a lesbian relationship that doesn’t end in death is refreshing. The sex scenes, while very graphic which isn’t always my cup of tea, are filed with emotion. It is the same raw emotion that is carried through every scene with Sook-hee and Hideko- true love.

The entire film is an emotional, unique, and thrilling artwork to be savoured again and again. The gothic tone and visuals throughout create a visual wonder and an emotional disgust. I could write an entire thesis on how amazing it is. The beautiful score elevates the tone of every scene perfectly and its storytelling is no less than exquisite. It takes the original source and creates fresh perspective that ups the tension and boosts the effectiveness of its plot twists. If the is one movie that I can recommend you watch, it is The Handmaiden.

[oneillsophieoneill]

A Morning Haiku Session

Magpie spotted here-

Bad luck they say but get this,

Bird was fucking cute,

  Clouds blanket the sun-

Life shivers as the wind blows,

It is cold down here,

[oneillsophieoneill]

The Annoying, Predictable, and Somewhat Depressing Bingo of the Token Gay and how to write a good LGBTQ character.

Hollywood’s relationship with LGBTQ characters is an infamous one. Whether its harmful stereotypes or every ‘bury your gays’ moment, straight writers have often fallen into these stereotypes. This post contains seven of the most common bad tropes.

1.    Bury Your Gays/Dead Lesbian

 The most common, and the most painful; the Bury Your Gays trope is when a gay character, usually one of the only featured dies tragically. Sometimes it’s a tragic hit and run, other times a stray bullet. Sometimes the writer goes straight for a brutal murder. This harmful stereotypes hits home the notion that the LGBTQ characters are less important than their straight counterparts.

It’s especially noticeable as these shows’ characters are usually predominantly straight. It also falls into the category of implying that a gay person won’t have a happy ending and hurts the community.

 2.    The Depraved Gay

 Beginning in the 30s the Hays code banned nudity, suggestive dancing, and lustful kissing. The code also band homosexuality onscreen. To get around this, writers used other traits to tip off viewers.

Unfortunately these tropes were often negative and still persist. The deplorable gay is a villain that is either gay or has queer-coded traits. Think about Disney villains- Hades is sassy, Ratigan is flamboyant man and Ursula is based on a drag queen with her exaggerated make up and a vain and sexual personality. These traits- while not necessarily queer exclusive- are common stereotypes of gay men.

The use of these stereotypes forces an otherness onto the villains, separating them from the- presumably cis, straight- audience. It taps into the prejudices of the hays era and associates gay traits with villains. Even in more progressive times we still see this occur. Sometimes the villains aren’t simply ‘queer-coded’ they are shown as clearly gay. Examples being jokes about prison rape or paedophilia. Not only is it joking about a serious issue, it paints the image of gay men as predators. In blockbusters like Skyfall to novels like the ridiculously conservative Victoria, we see the association again and again. Basically, it sucks.

 3.    The Depraved Bisexual

 Like the Depraved Gay, the Bisexual version is often a villain that is more comfortable with things considered ‘taboo’. They are overtly sexual, which is presented as part of their villainous personality as a socio or psychopath. Often, if it is a bisexual man. they are more predatory and if it is a woman, expect her to be hypersexualized for the fanservice. Both kinds are displayed as sexualized, predatory and -plot twist- villainous.

Something more on the nose is the mirror universe alternative protagonist. In this world our hero is the villain and to show off this newfound evil we see their new bisexual tendencies. Think of Star Trek’s Major Kira- in the mirror-verse she is narcissistic, domineering, and flirts with good Kira as much as she flirts and kisses the other women around her. You wonder why only now does the writers choose to portray Kira as Bi? Why hasn’t it been shown before and why do they never ever mention it again?

 4.    Every time a cis actor plays a trans person

 Eddie Redmayne, Elle Fanning, Jeffery Tambor. A harmful occurrence in casting choices is when cisgender actors (who’s gender identify corresponds with their birth sex) are cast as trans characters. Not only does this take away roles from transgender actors it promotes a harsh and sometimes deadly stereotype that trans people are just cisgender people in wigs and cross-dress. Like I’ve said before the continued use of tropes like these have negative effects on the fight for acceptance and equal representation and transphobia-based violence is a major issue influenced by stereotypes. While there is debate in the trans community over whether cis actors should be allowed to take on trans roles, an overall take is that trans narratives need to be represented more and not just in stereotypical performances.

 5.    GBF (The Gay Best Friend)

 The GBF is the instantly recognised side-character that accompanies their straight, female best friend through their trials and tribulations. Armed with sass, camp, and other effeminate qualities, he is there to say ‘gurl’ and provide cheap laughs. Sometimes these characters are well-developed and progress the plot. Other times they are accessories just there to be the gay friend and have little substance. A great example of this being subverted is the film G.B.F where freshly outed teen, Tanner becomes the must have accessory for the three most popular girls. In the end, Tanner speaks at prom and calls out all the girls that tried to use him, for not valuing him as a person. Films like this prove the GBF can be a good character if the writer treats the GBF like a person and makes them 3-dimensional.

6.    A Gay person as a joke

 I’m not sure if I need to explain why this is one is wrong. It just is.

 7.    And finally, barely there gays for clout

 Every few years a blockbuster comes out and during the press tour the Straight director or one of his brave, brave actors will step out and declare to the journalist from some media website that they have made the ground-breaking decision to make one (1) character Gay! Soon after the press will discuss how great this is for equality and how amazing it will be to see and how it will affect them at the box-office. Then, come the premiere, the world watches with bated breath, for the fabled gay- then they miss it- because they had one little scene.  It is frustrating when a blockbuster gets praised for a blink and you’ll miss scene when dozens of films that focus on the LGBTQ characters and invest in same-sex relationships get largely ignored by mainstream media. This is not to say you can’t be happy and talk about the representation in your writing, the issue is when a creator uses it for clout but does not invest in the character or even name them.

Even worse is the Rowling method. You know what I mean. It’s when a writer decides to retcon their series after its finished to get diversity points. They take a character whose romantic life isn’t mentioned and suddenly announce their gayness in the same style they would announce another minor character is a minority; both without ever bothering to show it in any later canon.

 LGBTQ representation is something that’s is steadily improving, however certain tropes are yet to take the hint and retire. This list should in no way deter you from writing LGBTQ characters, even those that are butch lesbians or flamboyant men, but help you look critically at the way stereotypes influence us even subconsciously. Good luck with your own writing and Tarah!

[oneillsophieoneill]

Hello world, I’m Sophie O’Neill and this is my writers blog. I am writer currently studying at Edge Hill University. Expect to see reviews, poetry, and prose on here.