#{ award for lamest title goes to me

[nsjihae-blog]

⸢ changes are on the rise ⸥

DATE: 20190126 LOCATION: CONFERENCE HALL, MAIN HQ

jihae stands among the crowd of his fellow agents, gaze focused ahead on the form of one lee kiyoung as he stands at the podium. he thinks he can count on one hand how many times he’s seen him since his initiation into his position. still, he has to hand it to the man for being capturing the attention of his fellow peers so easily, charisma flowing from him in waves, and he’d admire it more if the circumstances were better. as it is, he doesn’t, focus instead on the words that leave him and another reminder of the tensions that have recently befallen the agency. the fact that it’s worse than people once would have thought leave him more rigid in the place he stands.

and jihae has noticed some changes in the presences surrounding him. he may be primarily absorbed in his computer or laptop or phone ninety-nine point nine percent of the time he’s at work but he notices things. he has since he was little and even onward after he was wrapped in a blanket of safety, when a simple hobby deviated to something criminal. looking over your shoulder, being aware of your surroundings, and suspicious of the people you associate with comes in handy-- paranoia serves one well if used correctly. so he’s picked up on the new faces and hasn’t missed how kang myungsoo, a loving, proud father of his son (pictures of him everywhere) and a man who’s worked as a security guard since he first joined, is now gone and there’s not a trace of him left behind. he can’t even begin to comprehend what part he might’ve played in the death of lee kiyoung’s predecessor and to be honest, he doesn’t want to.

(some part of him, a tiny part that attempts to be optimistic in spite of the neverending sharp cynical edge to his psyche, hopes that the man just fucked up and talked himself into unemployment.)

the tension in the room slowly develops into something almost suffocating, the warning disguised but no less palpable. his palms become clammy with sweat, stomach giving a lurch as the words ‘polygraph’ and ‘evaluation’ and ‘frequent’ roam freely inside of his head, taunting him with their presence. he’s never done well with the pressure of evaluations, always feeling as if he’s atlas carrying the world (his world but a world nonetheless) on his shoulders whenever they’re lingering in the distance. logically, he knows he has nothing to be concerned over because the idea of murdering someone in cold blood sickens him and the last person in the world he’d want to do that to would be park jaekwang when the man had ‘okay’ed his acceptance into nis in the first place. that matters little right now when the agency is in disarray and everyone is on watch for the next sign of disloyalty, his own mind questioning if his criminal background will single him out as one for extra scrutiny, for someone to wonder if he’s fallen off the proverbial horse.

changes are coming, tests of loyalty are coming, and though he has done nothing worthy of suspicion, knows this without a doubt, seo jihae is worried and terrified nonetheless.

[introvertguide]

The Apartment (1960); AFI #80

The next film on the list that we reviewed was the one of the last black and white films to win best picture, The Apartment (1960). The film actually held the title of last B&W Best Picture winner for 50 years until The Artist came along in in 2011. Along with Best Picture, the film was nominated for 10 Oscars and won Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Art Direction, and Best Editing. The film also won Best Picture from the Golden Globes, the BAFTAs, the Director’s Guild Awards, and the Critic’s Circle Awards. Truly a great synthesis of acting, directing, cinematography, music, and story, this movie is one of the lesser known greatest films of all time. I have more to say about this film, but I want to go over the story in all of its excellence. But first...

SPOILER ALERT!!! THIS COMEDY HAS LEGITIMATE SURPRISES AND SUBJECT MATTER THAT WOULDN’T FLY TODAY!!! TRULY A GREAT FILM THAT NEEDS TO BE SEEN!!! I STRONGLY SUGGEST WATCHING IT INSTEAD OF JUST READING THE STORY LINE!!!

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An opening run of establishing shots with a voice over by the main character lets the audience know that he is a drone accountant at a giant firm with little chance to move up in the world. C.C. Baxter (Jack Lemmon) is a lonely office drudge at a national insurance corporation in New York City. He has lucked out and found a way to leverage his home in order to climb the corporate ladder. Baxter allows four company managers to take turns borrowing his Upper West Side apartment for their extramarital liaisons, which he manages with a detailed schedule. Baxter has not seen any movement, but he is constantly offered the promise of a promotion since he is a “team player.��� 

One of the serious down sides of this ploy is that his apartment is in constant use and the bosses are making a mess and drinking all his liquor. C.C. has no place to go some nights so he stays and works late. Because C.C. is constantly going in and out and people can hear women in his apartment, he is starting to develop a different kind of reputation with the other tenants. While unable to enter his own apartment when it is in use, his neighbors assume that their neighbor is a playboy bringing home a different woman every night.

C.C. is able to get glowing performance reports from his four managers and he is able to submit them to the personnel director, Jeff D. Sheldrake (Fred MacMurray), in hope of a promotion. Sheldrake promises to promote him, but demands that he also receive use of the apartment for his own affairs, beginning that night. As compensation for such short notice, he gives Baxter two theater tickets to The Music Man. After work, C.C. asks Fran Kubelik (Shirley MacLaine), an elevator operator in the office building, to go to the musical with him. She agrees but goes first to meet with a "former fling," who turns out to be Sheldrake, and let him know there will be no more meetings. When Sheldrake dissuades her from breaking up with him and promising to divorce his wife for her, they go to the apartment as poor Baxter waits forlornly outside the theater.

Later, at the company's raucous Christmas party (there is dancing on the tables and the lamest strip tease of all time), Fran is told by Miss Olsen (Edie Adams), Sheldrake's secretary, that Sheldrake has also had affairs with her and other women employees. Later at Baxter’s apartment, Fran confronts Sheldrake with his lies. Sheldrake maintains that he genuinely loves her, but that he has no intention of splitting up with his wife. He then leaves to return to his suburban family as usual and Fran is so depressed that she finds sleeping pills in the apartment bathroom and attempts suicide.

Baxter learns through finding a dropped hand mirror that Fran is the woman Sheldrake has been taking to his apartment, so he goes to a bar and lets himself be picked up by a married woman. When they arrive at his apartment, he is shocked to find Fran in his bed, seemingly dead. He sends his pick-up away and enlists the help of his neighbor, Dr. Dreyfuss (Jack Krushen), to revive Fran without notifying the authorities. I should not laugh, but it is pretty funny that the doctor goes straight to slapping Fran in the face to wake her up. The actors did not hold back; he is slapping her in the face really hard, so much so that you can tell her cheeks are reddening even in black and white. Baxter makes Dreyfuss believe that he was the cause of the incident and, scolding his neighbor for his apparent philandering, Dreyfuss advises him to "be a mensch, a human being."

As Fran spends two days recuperating in the apartment, C.C. takes care of her, and a bond develops between them, especially after he confesses to having attempted suicide himself over unrequited feelings for a woman who now sends him a fruitcake every Christmas. While they play a game of gin rummy, Fran reveals that she has always suffered bad luck in her love life. As Baxter prepares a romantic dinner, one of the managers arrives with a woman. Although Baxter persuades them to leave, the manager recognizes Fran and informs his colleagues. Later confronted by Fran's brother-in-law, Karl Matuschka, who is looking for her, the managers direct Karl to the apartment out of jealousy. At the apartment, Karl's anger at Fran for her behavior is deflected by Baxter, who again takes responsibility. Karl punches C.C. (and interviews with Lemmon revealed that the punch did land), but when Fran kisses him for protecting her, he just smiles and says it "didn't hurt a bit."

Sheldrake learns that Miss Olsen told Fran about his affairs, so he makes the poor choice of firing the woman who knows of all his dealings, and she retaliates by meeting with Sheldrake's wife, who promptly throws her husband out. Sheldrake believes that this situation just makes it easier to pursue his affair with Fran. Having promoted C.C. to an even higher position, which also gives him a key to the executive washroom, Sheldrake expects Baxter to loan out his apartment yet again. Baxter gives him back the washroom key instead, proclaiming that he has decided to become a mensch, and quits the firm.

That night at a New Year's Eve party, Sheldrake indignantly tells Fran what happened. Realizing she is in love with Baxter, Fran abandons Sheldrake and runs to the apartment. At the door, she hears what sounds like a gunshot. Fearing that Baxter has attempted suicide again, she frantically pounds on the door. Baxter answers, holding a bottle of champagne whose cork he had just popped in celebration of his plan to start anew. As the two settle down to resume their gin rummy game, Fran tells C.C. that she is now free too. When he asks about Sheldrake, she replies, "We'll send him a fruitcake every Christmas." He declares his love for her, and she replies, "Shut up and deal."

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This film is one of the most praised movies of all time, but it is not one of the most generally well known. This is probably due to the subject matter, although It’s A Wonderful Life also deals with suicide and is one of the America’s most popular family films. The problem is most likely that extra marital affairs by big company management as a normal thing was highly frowned upon. With the whole #MeToo movement, it seems that this kind of philandering culture might very well have been a known problem for decades. A movie based around the premise that office managers need a nice place to have sex with secretaries and elevator girls would not have been acceptable under the Hays Code. This is also the second film on the AFI list where Fred MacMurray plays a bad guy before being the understanding patriarch on My Three Sons and the first person honored as a Disney Legend in 1987. Fun fact, MacMurray was an uncredited extra in a film called Girls Gone Wild in 1929.

Billy Wilder knew that this was going to be a divisive film due to content, but he also had the confidence that everything would work out following the massive success of his previous film, Some Like It Hot. Wilder had considered a film based on adultery back in the 1940s but was unable to get funding at the time due to the Hays Code. The film was also based on a real life Hollywood drama in which an agent was shot by a producer over an affair (in which a low level employee apartment was used) as well as a friend of a co-writer who returned home to a dead ex-girlfriend following a break-up. 

It is amazing to think that this film is described as a comedy. There are office politics in which mid-level managers use local celeb status to take advantage of their subordinates. There are half a dozen cheating husbands that string along their affairs. There are characters so hurt that they would rather die than deal with what is done with them. There are raging parties at work where everyone gets massively drunk and dance on the desks. Women are treated like objects that either need to be protected with violence or thrown away. And yet the film is legitimately fun with characters that are worth rooting for.

Some of the success rides on the fabulous acting of Jack Lemmon and Shirley MacLaine and the witty dialogue written by I.A.L. Diamond. In fact, the dialogue and limited characters feels a lot like a stage play, which come to fruition in the form of Promises, Promises on Broadway by Burt Bacharach, Hal David, and Neil Simon. Dealing with real sets and locations, however, resulted in some colds and sickness since the actors were really out in the New York snow. Some other realism in the film came from both lead actors taking blows for the film: Shirley MacLaine got proper slapped by the doctor and Jack Lemmon was really punched by the brother-in-law.

A stand out aspect for me in this film which I talk up quite a bit is the cinematography. I have used many screen grabs from the film and used them as my avatar. I identify with the feeling of being used for something which made a mid manager look good while allowing them to do bad things. In fact, I am sure that everyone has felt like a Baxter at some point, and it is great to see him stand up for himself. Here are a couple of screen grabs (besides the top photo above) that I have used:

That lonely man in the middle of countless empty desks, that look of frustration when others are using your things to live a better life than you, and that time that love makes utility become fun and gadgets seem pretentious. It is very easy for me to get lost in how much I love this film. It has been far and away my favorite find from the AFI Top 100 between when I first saw the film in 2014 and now.

So, should the film be on the top 100 list? It has the awards and the history along with being a fantastic film. Of course it belongs on the list. Would I recommend it? Yes. This film is the type that makes people like me want to go through lists like this. I had never heard of the film in 2014 and it floored me how good it was. Each time I watch I appreciate it more, and the whole film project becomes well worth my time and effort. This film is so good, it affirms my life choices. I invite and implore you to check it out for yourself.

[language-rxgers]

Grease Lightning (Bucky x Reader High School!AU)- Part 4

Summary: It’s intermission for the show, which means more Bucky/(Y/N) conversation!

Pairing: Bucky x Reader

Characters: Bucky Barnes, Reader, Natasha Romanoff, Maria Hill, Steve Rogers (mentioned), Peggy Carter (mentioned), Bruce Banner (mentioned), Sharon Carter (mentioned), Thor Odinson (mentioned)

Warnings: none

Word Count: 2256

masterlist

part 1 / part 2 / part 3 / part 5

When the show started, you and a few of the makeup crew stayed in the drama room to clean up and take inventory. You were just finishing the latter when Nat came up to the table you were seated at, setting down the backstage touch-up kit she had put together. “You gonna watch some of the show?” She inquired. You looked around the room. It seemed that everyone else had left to watch the show since you’d started inventory.

“Eh, maybe later. I should probably clean up some more and prep for intermission. Are you doing touch-ups tonight?” You asked, eyeing the makeup kit on the table. She nodded, tapping her fingertips on the table. It was silent for a moment save for the muffled performance outside in the theatre.

“So…” Nat grinned at you like the cat that ate the canary. “You and Bucky seem to get along.” You rolled your eyes.

“Oh, God, Nat. Not this again. Oh wow, I had a conversation with a guy, obviously we’re secretly in love and meant to be!” You waved your hands in the air and feigned excitement, then immediately dropped the act and shot Nat an unimpressed look. “Seriously, why do people always do that?”

Nat shrugged, smiling. “I’m just saying, you guys have a lot in common.”

You scoffed. “Yeah, we both like The Office. Guess I’m also soulmates with everyone else in this school by that logic.” Nat rolled her eyes. “Nat, seriously, you’re reading into this way too much. Why would he ever see me like that? We don’t hang out in the same friend group. We don’t have any classes together. We’d never even properly met until, like, two weeks ago. Plus, I heard he and Sharon Carter were a thing. Doesn’t that make more sense?”

Nat pursed her lips. “Well that must be awkward considering Sharon’s exclusive with that hot exchange student.” You opened and closed your mouth a couple of times. You really should spend less time holed up at home on weekends. You were really missing out on a lot.

“I… was not aware of that.” The redhead quirked an eyebrow. “Okay, whatever, just… enough, ‘kay?” You watched her expectantly. She took in a defeated breath and exhaled an okay, retreating out of the room with her touch-up kit in hand.

Before you knew it, intermission came and with it, an onslaught of cast members swarming to their makeup artists for fixups. You had managed to catch the last ten or so minutes of the first half, and much to your dismay, Bucky’s performance outshone all your expectations by lightyears. He stole the show with his effortlessly charming portrayal of Danny, and though you knew he had to have a good voice to have gotten the part, you were shocked by just how gifted a singer he was. You would have never expected that he would have such an impressive range and tone, and it infuriated you. How dare he have not only silky chocolate locks, piercing blue-turned-grey-turned-green-depending-on-the-weather-humidity-mood-angle-at-which-eye-contact-is-made-and/or-moon-cycle, and a smile that could literally shoot your blood pressure through the roof in 0.32557038 seconds, but also be an incredibly gifted singer and actor to boot? Jesus, you didn’t even say that out loud and you were out of breath.

Just as you managed to settle your nerves, that dumb gravelly voice tossed a big-ass rock into the calm pond of your mind and sent your thoughts rippling away once again. “Hey, you. Mind fixin’ me up a little?” You took a steadying breath and turned to face the giddy-smiled heartthrob.

“Eh, I don’t know if there’s enough time to fix all that needs fixin’, Zuko…” Bucky let out an ironic laugh before settling down in his chair. You cleared your throat as you dabbed at some foundation with a sponge. “So I saw the last bit of the first act.” You swallowed around the nervous lump that had formed in your throat. “You were really good.” And the award for the lamest understatement of the year goes to…

“Thanks, I mean I kept forgetting my lines and my voice totally cracked halfway through the opening song, but that’s nice of you anyway.” Bucky bit his lip and cast his eyes to the floor in a foreign case of shyness. Curious.

“No, really. You were amazing, you have such a gifted voice. I mean, I sound like a seagull with a crushed larynx myself, so I can definitely appreciate talent when I see it. Or hear it, I guess. Well, both, really, your acting was really good too.” You mentally face palmed. Gee, Bucky, you’re so amazing and you’re such a good singer and I sound like a strangled seagull with a potato for a head and please kill me and bury me six feet underground when you get the chance before I lose the last drop of my dignity, thanks.

Bucky let out a peal of surprised laughter, clutching his chest as he sunk down in his chair. “I’ve never heard that comparison before; that was hilarious, but I’m sure it’s not true. And thanks.” He gave you a genuine smile, and it was all you could do to keep from bursting into flames at that moment. You began touching up where his foundation had worn off during his performance, then grabbed the eyeliner for a quick touch up.

“Mind?” You held up the pencil with an apologetic grin. Bucky shook his head before leaning back in the chair and titling his head up for you. You positioned the pencil along his lower lash line, quickly becoming aware that Bucky’s piercing blue eyes were boring right into your own. You could literally see the glowing hue of your burning cheeks and nose in your peripheral. You blinked rapidly, clearing your throat. “C-could you, uh, could you please look up for a mo-ment?” Your eyes squeezed shut at your voice crack, and you could feel your hands beginning to shake.

“Oh, right, yeah.” Bucky’s eyes fluttered up to the ceiling and you stiffly applied the liner as quickly and lightly as you could. You took a few steps back to scan his figure- purely to check for anything else that needed touching up, of course, no other reason.

“I think you’re done.” Bucky nodded, eyes flashing to the clock on the wall behind you. He stayed seated, fidgeting before running a hand through his hair.

“Uh, could you- maybe you should check my hair. You know, just in case.” He shrugged. You hesitated before nodding. “You know, for the dance scenes and stuff.”

“Sure. That’s probably a good idea.” You applied a bit more gel, fixed the style slightly and sprayed it with a finishing coat of hairspray. If you were being honest, his hair didn’t really need it; it was already so full of product that it would take a full-on hurricane before that sucker came out of its style. But, you supposed Bucky would know if the dancing in the next half would be too rigorous for his hair to stay.

You wiped the product from your hands and threw out the paper towel, turning to see Bucky still planted firmly in his seat. His leg was bouncing with nerves and he wiped his palms on the tops of his thighs. “Hey,” you pulled him from his thoughts. He looked up at you with wide eyes. “Don’t be nervous. You’re gonna do great. I know it. You know it.” You offered a reassuring smile, and he returned a grateful one.

“Thanks.” You nodded. His eyes flashed from your gaze to the floor to the wall before finding their way back to you. “Hey, uh, can I ask you something?” You nodded, taking a step forward to hear him amongst the chatter of the other artists and cast members. Bucky cleared his throat before exhaling and inhaling a short and nervous breath. “So a few of us were gonna go to the diner after the performance tonight. Doyouwannacome?” You’d never experienced whiplash before but you were sure it felt something like this.

“Wha-pardon?” Bucky’s eyes were wide in alarm. It was almost like he was shocked at the words that had tumbled from his lips. He blinked a couple times before taking in a steadying breath.

“A group of us from the cast are gonna go out for a burger after the show tonight. Would you wanna come with me- us?” Your mouth went dry in surprise as you tried to process what he was asking. It sounded like just an outing with friends, but you didn’t know any of Bucky’s friends in the cast. Why would he invite you? You were lame and kinda boring. Why was he willingly seeking out more time in your company? You wanted so desperately to go, but you were worried it would be awkward being in a group of people you didn’t know. You were terrified of making a fool of yourself, or of becoming the third or fourth or whatever wheel to this group of popular kids you didn’t fit in with. Bucky seemed discouraged by your hesitation, biting his lip in anticipation for your answer.

“Could Nat come along?” You wondered aloud. Bucky’s eyes lit up and he nodded eagerly.

“Sure, of course! So you’re coming?” You shrugged, smiling nervously.

“I guess so, yeah. I’m not really sure if I’ll know anyone so I might not be much of a fun invitee, but yeah, I’d like that.” Bucky grinned.

“Awesome! Cool. Neat. And it’s just like Thor, Bruce, Steve and Peggy. As long as Steve’s there, you definitely don’t have to worry about being the lamest one in the group.” You laughed, feeling a wave of relief crash over you that you wouldn’t have to worry about being an outsider. Well, you didn’t know Thor Odinson very well, but you’d only heard good things about him, and if he was also friends with Steve and Peggy then he couldn’t be that bad. Bucky rubbed his hands together, wringing his fingers subconsciously. Ms. Hill’s authoritative voice rang through the room as she called five minutes to the end of intermission. Bucky’s head whipped around to the clock, eyebrows raising. “Well, I should get backstage, uh- but I’ll see you after the show, yeah? We can like, carpool or somethin’.” You nodded, not having the heart to tell him you’d brought your own vehicle.

“Sure, I’ll be here.”

After cleaning everything up and taking inventory, you managed to catch the last twenty minutes of the show, and you had to say, it was just as good as the first part you’d seen, if not better. It was truly impressive, all the work and commitment the cast and crew had put into this show. And Bucky, well if there was a single thing he couldn’t do then you’d be well and truly shocked. He could act, he could sing, and now he could dance too? What was his deal?

You were grabbing your jacket when Nat entered the makeup room again with the touch up kit. You offered her a smile before remembering Bucky’s invitation at intermission. “Hey, um, Bucky asked if we wanted to join him and the gang- our gang- to get a bite after the show.”

Nat raised her eyebrows in delighted surprise. “Well, well, well, lookee what we have here…” she teased. You rolled your eyes.

“Note that I said ‘we’? You’re coming too.” Nat laughed.

“Was I included verbatim in his initial invitation or did you ask if I could come along?” Nat’s eyes poured into your own smugly as she awaited the answer she already knew.

You licked your lips. “Well, he didn’t name any names, but the invite was open…”

Nat grinned. “He totally asked you out! Why did you wanna drag me along?”

“Because he said it was with a group of friends and I was worried it would be the popular kids. I didn’t want to be alone and awkward. And he was totally fine with you coming along, by the way. It was just him being nice, it wasn’t a date.”

Nat pursed her lips. “That doesn’t mean he’s not interested. It just means he’s looking for ways to get to know you first before jumping out and saying he likes you. He just met you, he’s testing the waters to see if you like him too.”

You were about to retort that it was ridiculous she was even suggesting the idea, when Bucky appeared at the door, a lovely bouquet in hand. His eyes searched the room before landing on yours, and his shoulders seemingly relaxed. He waved at you before heading towards you and Nat.

“Hey, you stayed!” He exclaimed, grinning from ear to ear. You scoffed.

“What, you thought I’d pass up the chance for food?” Who says that to the guy on whom they have a crush- no not crush, more like appropriate admiration-? Bucky chuckled sincerely.

“Well, you’re in for a treat, this is my favourite diner. They have the absolute best burgers and shakes.”

“Can’t wait,” you grinned. Bucky gestured towards the door and allowed you to go first, placing a hand over the small of your back as he led you out of the room and to the exit. You felt a shoe catch your heel and you lightly stumbled before falling back into step with Bucky. You glared over your shoulder at a smugly grinning Natasha, who merely followed you out of the school and to the parking lot.

part 1 / part 2 / part 3 / part 5

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