#British Lion FIlms

[screamscenepodcast]

From director Edmond Gréville comes THE HANDS OF ORLAC (1960)! Starring Mel Ferrer, Christopher Lee, Lucile Saint-Simon and Dany Carrel, will this British and French co-production be the best adaptation of the Maurice Renard novel yet?

Context setting 00:00; Synopsis 17:12; Discussion 33:57; Ranking 55:28

[vintage1981]

Exclusive First Look The Wicker Man The Official Story of the Film by John Walsh

Take an exclusive first look deep inside the book that looks at the making of the best British horror film ever made, The Wicker Man. Author John Walsh offers a chance to win a signed copy too. The Wicker Man: The Official Story of the Film hits shelves in the UK on October 23 followed by the US on November 7.

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The definitive guide to the making of the landmark horror movie The Wicker Man is lavishly illustrated and packed with insights into this classic chiller.

The Wicker Man is one of the greatest horror movies of all time – a chilling exploration of an isolated community with a terrible secret. Featuring a stellar cast including Christopher Lee, Edward Woodward, Britt Ekland, and Ingrid Pitt, The Wicker Man has terrified audiences worldwide for fifty years. Author and filmmaker John Walsh tells the story of how this singular – and somewhat unlikely – folk-horror classic came to be, illustrated with fascinating behind-the-scenes photography, new interviews, exclusive artwork, and never-before-seen material from the StudioCanal archives. Learn the secret history of Summerisle – if you dare…

About the author: John Walsh is an award-winning filmmaker with a focus on social justice. His work ranges from television series to feature films. He is a double BAFTA and double Grierson Awards nominee for his ground-breaking work. He is a trustee of the Ray and Diana Harryhausen Foundation.

In addition to his film and TV screenplays, John has written for The Telegraph and online publications on film history, politics and religion. He is a four times Rondo Award Nominee for “Book of the Year” with Harryhausen: The Lost Movies, FLASH GORDON: The Official Story of the Film, Escape From New York: The Official Story of the Film and Dr Who & The Daleks: The Official Story of the Films. Coming in 2023, Conan The Barbarian: The Official Story of the Film.

Published worldwide on the 24 October 2023 UK & USA |  Hardback | 192pp www.walshbros.co.uk @walshbros

[assortedvillainvault]

"#...though everything in me wants to analyse the intersection of power and species in this film I must grit my teeth and acknowledge it is#Not That Deep and british ecology will have no meaning in a fun little film adaptation from the 50's"

No, please keep talking. This is the shit I live for! Okay, we know the truth is that is makes zero sense, but trying to make sense of it sounds very fun.

My own tuppence worth on the subject is just noting that the film would have taken place only about 100 years after the Norman invasion, which presumably in this Disney animal 'verse means that lions and other non-native predators would have been in every major position of power for all of living memory. It makes me wonder if Marian being a fox could mean she was descended from and Anglo-Saxon noble line that was deposed by the Normans. This could then add to the reading of invasive species (the rich and nobility) harming the entire ecosystem of society by over-exploiting native species.

So we have a story of the trickster non-apex predator who fits into this ecosystem, who belongs there due to having a place in the multi-species (multicultural) society versus the invasive apex predator who is a symbol of royalty, divinely appointed, and yet he is very much not a real part of this community he would nevertheless rule.

As a Brit, it's pretty reflective of how the nobility of the UK still works nigh on 900 years on. It's not anti-immigrant (see the bloody tortoise character, which is definitely a non-native species) but I read it as a condemnation of people with power and status who are so removed from the common people they rule that they may as well be of another species from another continent.

King Richard returning at the end kind of undercuts this reading, though, so I am definitely trying to shove my anti-monarchist views into a narrative not made to accommodate them.

Anyway, please share your thoughts on this, I need someone else to go way too deep into things with!

@the-phony-king-of-england

You are both wonderful, terrible enablers and I adore you.

Honestly Lancre you've pretty much nailed the historical implications I was trying to articulate in my own brain - that of the rich being animals that do not suit the area they're occupying.

Be warned I'm going to expand on this via an ecological wandering ramble below with no clear conclusion, so yay???

This. Gets. LONG.

(Also I'm shaking hands with you tightly, Brit for Brit on monarchial views here)

Aight ok. Basics first.

The Disney 70's (not 50's, my bad) Robin Hood is a loose adaptation of various folktales regarding Robin of Sherwood, who's tales originate at earliest, from the 1100's, and stretch to the 1500's. Robin as a singular figue never likely existed as just one person, and instead is a conglomerate of various daring, altruistic thief figures of semi-dubious origin. Dubious because this is medieval England and there ain't much to do but get piss drunk and swap tales around the pub fireplace, so there's always an element of inaccuracy and exaggeration for entertainment.

The setting of the story takes place in the city of Nottingham, and the surrounding Sherwood Forest. Both of which still obviously exist, though Nottingham is obviously MUCH larger than it was, and the forest has been reduced to mostly pine plantations and scattered ancient remnants of the original woodland.

There's no map for the medieval borders of the forest becuase officials were relying on collective memory and physially walking around the wood occasionally to demark it's location, but guesstimates would move he green area on the left image to encompass Nottigham and widen the forest eastwards a bit too.

The above reduction in size makes me smad, but that's beside the point. Sherwood in all it's medieval 100,000 acres was a royal wood - permissible to hunt in ONLY for the King and his fave besties. This is a point I'll come back to later. There was 1 (ONE) road to london south through it, and that road was prime time for Robin & co. to do as they do best, as we see in the opening scenes of Disney's adaptation.

The disney adaptation uses anthropomorphic animals to depict the typical robin hood story.

This is where my little conservation-masters-equivalent-certificate having bum starts to get it's knickers in a twist.

Like. I get it. On a folklore and symbolism level, the basic animals make sense. Robin is a red fox, a figure in British folklore often associated with cunning, trickery and swiftness - making him a perfect rackish protagonist, an outlaw with a heart of gold. Foxes are known to steal, and adapt very well to both modern urban environments and the medieval woodlands and fields. Brilliant choice, no notes.

John.

...John.

*deep sigh*

I KNOW. Our national animal and symbol for royalty is a lion. I KNOW. John and Richard being lions is a direct tie in to the lion coat of arms of the Duchy of Aquitaine, one of the ruling families to invade as part of the norman invasion. John even speaks french on occasion in the film, and directly refers to it as 'the norman' way! I GET IT.

That we have not had any lions, much less the african lion alive today, living on our island since the last glaciation period is something I'm still bitterly annoyed about, but whatever. It's fine.

That this also implies that Normandy, aka modern France, has a thriving population of lions running about in some fusion of french temperate flats and the kenyan savannah is something I just have to grit my teeth and nod about, but WHATEVER IT'S F I N E -

*Insert aggressive bardcore accordion music here*

Ugh. Moving on.

Ecologically, and story wise, it would make most sense for the denizens of Nottingham to be anthropomorphised as animals native to the region. And for the most part this holds up. We have the rabbit family, the mice, the owls, blacksmith dog, the singing rooster and Lady Cluck the Chicken, who has my WHOLE heart in this film. Friar Tuck is allegedgly a badger...

...which I doubt, but I'll allow it I guess. (I would prefer the black & white be actually depicted, and for the man to have claws. Let him have his claws he deserves them.)

Then...we have Little John.

British ecology is famous as being incredibly lacking in the modern day, due to a combination of land management changes, hunting, climate change and our being an island nation. All our major carnivores are extinct, and have been for a long time.

John is a brown bear.

Brown bears have been extinct in Britian for over 1000 years.

Even at the earliest possible time of the film, brown bears will have been dead for 200 years. John's existence should have been something almost goddamn-messiah like in this film. Last of the giants type stuff. I'd love for Lancrew's above point of large british animals to have been defeated 100 years prior by Norman invading lions (deeeeeeeep sigh) to hold up here and have John be a last descendant of nobility. He's a common man in all the legends, but it would be a great addition to how he schmoozed John at the archery tournament.

Looking at Johns forces now instead...

...what the FUCK is going on.

This, I GUESS, is an easy hand wavy way to visualise bad guys vs good guys. Cute forest critters vs afro-french (DEEP SIGH) mega herbivores & carnivores shows an obvious power inbalance between the local animals and Johns forces, and explains why the townsfolk can't rise up on their own. Rabbits aren't exactly going to do much against halberd weilding plate armoured legions of Rhinoceros.

BUT GOD ALMIGHTY WE COULD HAVE TRIED FOR EUROPEAN FAUNA, AT LEAST A LITTLE BIT???

Easy stuff first. Sir Hiss looks about 1, maybe 1.5 meters long, is green, and has no allusion to venom in the film. I've got him down as a grass snake, our largest species. Excellent. No notes.

The wolves are also easy. Wolves didn't go exinct in England until the 1500's, and alledgedly survived in Scotland until the 1700's. While I personally dislike the depiction of wolves as purely villainous in media, here the Sheriff and his men are the perfect foils to Robin. A larger canine species, moving in packs and hunting him in his own woods (that he's SQUATTING IN, because the woods are owned by John and the crown!), and exempliying the selfishness of the crown by having the Sheriff be dressed in bright colours, with fashionable sleeves while the townsfolk are in rags.

Also aside from the Friar, who is fat in every depsiction of the story, the Sherriff is noticably overweight compared to his men and the pallid, sickly looking townsfolk. The fact his clothes fit him when he's a body type almost no-one else has is a great further subtle show of proof that he's living indulgently and comfortably in his life of active cruelty enforcing John's will, and has no intention of stopping.

His other soldiers....

...ok. Since Lady Cluck - a chicken - is half the size of brown bear little John, there's some leeway for size. The vultures I think could feasably have been ravens, magpies or crows: still a little subtly morbid still, fitting for guards. Or maybe storks or herons, or even seagulls! To keep the silly antics and mean streak.

I- look. The rhino's are the main kind of guard featured. They're big, they're strong, they're imposing to look at and occasionally bumbling.

European Bison were RIGHT THERE.

Pigs and wild boar are depicted as background characters in a couple of scenes. do. Do you have ANY idea how large wild boar can be? Especially 500+years ago?! These things FUCKED. And they actively fucked you up when they wanted to. This wouldn't even be a case of british animals being wiped out in the wars - these things were prevalent all over Europe!

WHERE ARE THE DEER. The penultimate prey species for large cats?????? Not a single goddamn doe or stag have I seen in this film?? Sherwood Forest was a DEER HUNTING FOREST?! Not even as soldiers, Robin should have been able to help anthropo-medieval Bambi away from the wolves at least once.

I am not going to even fucking talk about the crocodile. Madam, in whose climate? We can barely keep 3 species of finger-length lizard alive through our wet, cold, windy climate, howmst the FUCK-

My only course of action is to admit that at some point in this universes timeline: There rose a kingdom of immense power in East Africa that has since, over many generations, colonised northwards and subjugated/wiped out European ecosystems. They reached the british isles around the medieval period, and now thanks to Prince John and Sir Hiss hypnotising King Richard, they are continuing expansion eastward via the crusades.

The vultures are there to eat the carcasses of the conquered nations armies. There. Evil as fuck but also exonomical.

Do Not Speak to Me About The Raccoons.

As far as I'm concerned these are oddly coloured red squirrels.

I hope you enjoyed this absolutely insane spiel of nonsense.

[whalesharkgummer]

selling on depop @ emmaeboddy

[edplaysbass]

And there's the third and final review of the ones I've been putting off - Four Lions (2010).

[assortedvillainvault]

@the-phony-king-of-england it's your men!!

"Rubbish." The prince slammed a meaty paw down on the table where Sir Hiss struggled. Everything shook, including the reptiles heart. A lesser lion he might have been compared to Richard, but John was still an apex predator who could easily smash almost any animal to a bloody pulp.

- Liz Braswell in A Twisted Tale Anthology (A Royal Game of Chess; What if history wasnt quite right about the legend of Robin Hood?).

[wisteria-lodge]

SORTING DISNEY LADIES (1999-2004)

Part 1 - Disney Ladies 1937-1985

Part 2 - Disney Ladies 1988-1993

Part 3 - Disney Ladies 1995-1998

I’m going in chronological order, and doing both A Squad and B Squad, because I’m interested in tracking how the ideal “disney girl” has changed in the last (almost) 90 years. Right now I’m only looking at the human-shaped heroines of Disney animated theatrical releases. A more detailed break-down of the system I’m using is right here, but the basics are these: 

PRIMARY (ie MOTIVE) 

BADGER ~ Loyal to the group.

SNAKE ~ Loyal to yourself and your Important People.

LION ~ Subconscious Idealist. Ideals are linked to feelings and instincts. 

BIRD ~ Conscious Idealist. Ideals are linked to built systems and external facts. 

SECONDARY (ie METHOD) 

BADGER ~ Connect with the group. Make allies, work steadily and well. Be whatever the situation calls for. If you find a locked door, knock.

SNAKE ~ Connect with the environment. Notice things. Tell people what they want to hear. If you find a locked door, get in through the window.

BIRD ~ Collect skills, tools, knowledge, personas, useful friends. If you find a locked door, track down the key or learn to pick the lock.

LION ~ Be honest, be direct, speak your truth. Either the obstacle is going down or you are. If you find a locked door, kick it in.

JANE PORTER (1999)

(& Tarzan, Kerchack)

Disney’s Tarzan is a ridiculously Snake primary movie. Like,  just to make this really, really clear, the first thing we see - the absolute cold open, is - 

Burning ship! Storm! Fire! Tarzan’s parents get into a lifeboat! He looks at her. She looks at him. Phil Collins --

PUT YOUR FAITH IN WHAT YOU MOST BELEEEIVE IN!!!!!!

We get it. You can lose literally everything, but if you’ve still got your Person, you’re going to be OK. 

And this movie’s ethos is definitely Snake, not Loyalist. Badger primaries do not get a flattering edit. The antagonist for the first half is Tarzan’s adoptive father Kerchack, who is deeply protective of his band of gorillas (all girls, by the way. He's the only guy. Which is how gorillas work, and the film doesn’t exactly bring attention to it, but still. Interesting detail.) He’s a loud Badger primary: the only thing that matters is keeping his family out of danger, and from his perspective Tarzan is a problem from day one. He is too obviously an outsider, not a true member of the community, and Kerchack makes it clear that Tarzan is not his son. “You can’t learn to be one of us," he says.

The antagonist for the second half of the film (it’s a weirdly structured film) is the Jaguar/Clayton. They are 100% the same entity. Clayton shows up immediately after the Jaguar dies, and shows up wearing the exact same color palette. There is a recurring misunderstanding where Tarzan refers to the sound of a gunshot as “Clayton.” This is not supposed to be a person, this is violence personified.

Clayton is also our visual representation of The British Empire/Colonialism, with his spats and his khakis and little pencil mustache, and Brian Blessed doing his voice. He is there to grab the resources (gorillas) and take them back to England. So… that means we’ve got some more Toxic Badger going on here too.

In this film, the Badger primary idea of “community” is framed as stifling, artificial, at odds with nature. Clayton, Jane, and Jane’s father show up in the jungle dressed all wrong, and while the sympathetic Porters gradually shed layers, Clayton’s character design never changes. He does not learn to adapt to the jungle, he is only England™

There’s also the recurring joke of Jane’s “Proper Victorian Lady” persona. It’s very useful for getting Clayton specifically to do things for her… but she also brings it out in moments where it seems false and not terribly appropriate. Like when she’s talking to monkeys, or to Tarzan. The second she realizes that Tarzan can speak English she snaps into “Proper Victorian Lady” instead of following up on the attraction that’s clearly there. She’s holding him at arm's length, and why??? The moment where he comes out dressed in European clothing is bittersweet, like Tarzan is hiding or losing part of himself. “Society” is at odds with instinct/freedom/love, and in terms of Primary, that’s the major conflict between Tarzan and Jane.

JANE. Tarzan, you can't imagine what's in store for you. You're going to see the world. Everyone's going to want to meet you. Kings, scientists and famous writers. (...)  TARZAN. And I'll be with Jane.

Jane is talking like a Badger (you’ll be part of the community.) Tarzan is talking like a Snake (I’ll be with you.) And Jane DOES feel like a Badger through most of the movie. She talks a good game. But right at the end - when it really comes down to it - that’s not the call she makes. 

JANE. I belong in England, with you and people and — PROFESSOR PORTER. But you love him. Go on.

At which point Jane joyfully jumps off the boat and swims to shore, implying that her Badger primary was a model, and she was always a Snake primary underneath. 

Jane Porter might model Double Badger extremely well, but she’s actually a double Snake like Megara. She’ll go all Proper Victorian Lady to flatter Clayton, but she’ll also manipulate the baby monkey (“Oh I can’t believe you fell for that one”) before commenting on how its performance isn’t quite up to her standards (“Don’t give me those crocodile tears.”) She’s also something of a Single-Player Environment snake. When she gets comfortable, she starts learning how to use the things in her environment. She’s delighted when she learns she can use her parasol as a weapon. Jane also seems to pick up that Tarzan is a Bird secondary and interacts with him accordingly, which her slideshow of buildings, customs, and art from the mainland.

(Tarzan is definitely a Bird secondary: he's an inventor, he makes weapons, he loves teaching himself things. He’s much more tactical than Kerchak, who - as a 300 pound gorilla - uses his lion secondary to literally charge into fights. Phil Collins tells us all we need to know about Tarzan with the lyrics: “I want to know / Can you show me?” Perfect Snake Bird anthem.)

When we see Jane at the very end of the film she’s entirely improvisational and fluid, down to her absolute bottom layer of clothing, surfing the vines with Tarzan. It’s a gorgeous bit of animation. I definitely get a sense of the joy she feels at being so unconstrained and evenly matched. That's one more thing that makes me think she's a Snake secondary, who ends the film in Neutral.

KIDADIKASH  “KIDA” NEDAKAH (2001)

(& Milo, King Kashekim)

Atlantis is so close to being a good movie. All it needs is a slightly longer runtime, and like… two less characters. (Mole and Cookie. Don’t need them.) Kida gets less screen time compared than some of the the other ladies on this list, but she has enough presence and a cool enough design that she easily earns heroine status. It also helps that she’s basically the plot.

Kida wants to restore the traditions and knowledge her people have lost, and that motivates pretty much everything she does. She finds the history and culture of her ancestors deeply important, comforting and grounding in a very Badger primary sort of way, and laments that “We were once a great people. Now we live in ruins. The kings of our past would weep if they could see how far we have fallen.” She is very much not Jane, who needs to shake off “civilization” in order to live her best life. 

The problem though, is that Kida falls into a very Badger primary trap. When she’s asked to give up everything to protect the group - including her well-being and identity - she does it without a second thought. She gets turned/turns herself into a magic crystal in order to power her civilization while it’s under threat, and I cannot think of a better metaphor of what it means to be an Invisible Badger, who is only the group with no identity outside it.

The ‘Heart of Atlantis’ crystal that “thrives on the collective emotions of all who came before us [and] in return, provides power, longevity, protection” is just a good metaphor for a ‘Badger Primary’ in general. Also, the way that the Atlantean King tries to weaponize it, ultimately destroying his civilization, works as a metaphor for the way a Badger primary can Explode, becoming authoritarian and harmful to the same people it is trying to protect.

Clearly the film itself is not a fan of this decision, as our protagonist Milo loves Kida and does everything he can to un-crystal her. I think it’s implied that his love is one of the main things tethering her to humanity? Still, I would say that this film, unlike Tarzan, has a pretty Badger ethos. King Kashekim is our tragic misguided Snake primary, willing to let his whole civilization crumble so long as he gets to keep his daughter, and our villains seem to be mostly Hedonist Snake treasure hunters, willing to destroy a culture so long as they get paid. The film is definitely critical of certain types of Badger primaries, but ends on a note of collectivism. Milo has finally found a community that values him, and he stays behind to help Kida, now the Atlantean Queen, rebuild her civilization. She’s still a Badger, just one with better boundaries. 

She’s also a Lion secondary. Kida moves in straight lines, speaks her mind, and doesn’t care if you have a problem with that. She does the thing where she’s so honest and blunt it’s almost rude. I suspect that her father is also a Lion secondary - we know that he was reckless and militaristic when he was young, and he seems positive that if Kida even knew about the Heart of Atlantis, she would make the Lion secondary call and dive headfirst into it. Sadly, in the main timeline of the movie the King’s secondary is extremely burned, and he’s basically incapable of any kind of action. 

Milo has an idealistic Lion primary that's a bit Burnt at the start of the film. When we meet him, he’s spent years being told that everything he believes is a joke, and he’s finally starting to doubt himself, scraping by just using his Bird secondary. Like a lot of Burnt Lions, Milo latches onto someone (Kida) for their confidence and their purpose. Luckily, once he unBurns there's a Paragon Lion under there that matches up very well with her Badger.

LILO PELEKAI (2002)

Lilo is an interesting one to sort, because she’s little - and also kinda going through it. Her parents died in a (fairly recent) car crash, and even though they’re not *on screen* and honestly mentioned very little… their absence is felt. Lilo's unofficial family motto is “Ohana means family, family means nobody gets left behind.” But objectively, Lilo’s parents did her behind, and she spends the entire film trying to reconcile that.

Lilo is very young, dealing with a tragedy, and I also think the interpretation that she’s on the autism spectrum makes a lot of sense. We see her having meltdowns, struggling to transition from one activity/location to another, she clearly wants to make these connections with kids her own age, but it’s just… not working. All of that could absolutely point to a five (six?) year old on the spectrum. So the question becomes - okay, so is Lilo acting this way because that’s her personality, or is she acting this way because of the autism/trauma? That's a question I get a lot, and my answer is… I don’t think the traits this system is interested in are created out of nowhere. But, circumstances can absolutely make them louder or softer. 

Like, Lilo has a number of very strict rules that tip over into magical thinking. She can only eat peanut butter sandwiches because she has to feed part of her sandwich to her fish, and she can’t feed her fish tuna (dead fish) because that’s “an abomination.” It’s very important that she keeps her fish happy because her fish controls the weather. And THAT’S important… because her parents died in a rainstorm. All of this is 100% a coping mechanism: Lilo is trying to create rules in a chaotic world to feel safer. She’s after a sense of control. This also ties into her fascination with 'goodness' versus 'badness:' she’ll say things like “I’ll be good I promise,” worry about being an “abomination,” make charts of Stitch's "badness level" and also voodoo dolls because “my friends need to be punished.”  It’s something she's focused on, and I think it’s because she is aware that… she’s kind of a problem.  

Her older sister Nani loves her… but Nani also loses her patience (she’s 21, 22 at most) and Lilo is aware that she stresses out her sister and makes her life more difficult. But, she has trouble changing her behavior because she's, you know, a traumatized autistic six-year-old. Which is really important when it comes to understanding Lilo’s relationship with Stitch. On one level, she identifies with the way he leaves all this destruction in his wake. He makes her look better by comparison, and I think she also sees a path towards redemption in teaching Stitch to be “good” (ie - useful and less weird.) When she tells him “You wreck everything you touch, why not try to make something” - I think she’s projecting, and really talking about herself. If Lilo is teaching Stitch to be good, then she has a purpose, and a way to affect the world. We know that feeling powerless is a big thing for Lilo. 

So, if I’m putting her in the SHC system, she is definitely an External primary. None of this is about being true to your heart or even being true to another person, this is trying to figure out the rules of the world and putting together a workable system to live with. This focus on morality and punishment is also something I see a lot with young External primaries. While this trait might have been exaggerated by the events of Lilo's life, I do think it’s something that was just in her the whole time. 

At first I thought she was a Badger, because of the way Lilo focuses on the importance of family. Also, her first instinct after she thinks Stitch has betrayed her is to outgroup him: “You’re one of them - get out of here.” But “Ohana means family” seems like it was something her parents said a lot, and ‘Stitch isn’t one of us,’ is something she’s heard from Nani (absolutely a Badger primary.) I think a big reason Lilo values hula dancing is because hula dancing is important to Nani.

So now I’m leaning towards Lilo being a young Bird, trying to cobble together a system for understanding the world under non-ideal circumstances. She’s very comfortable believing fantastical things, and is cool with accepting that Stitch is a weird kind of dog. Like Tarzan and Atlantis, Lilo and Stitch is lightly critical of that Badger ethos: the group is wonderful, yes - but the group will not always be there. The conclusion Lilo (and the film) comes to is: Ohana means family, family means never getting left behind… but sometimes people leave. Either because they want to, or because they have to. What you have to do is remember them. You make them part of yourself. As Lilo puts it, "I’ll remember you, though. I remember everyone that leaves." I think this is such a lovely way of understanding Bird primaries, which unfortunately have a reputation for being cold and detached.

In terms of secondary, I think Lilo is probably a Lion. She’s very direct, very honest, terrible at lying, and unintentionally trails destruction. Nani tries to give her a kind of script to follow when the social worker comes over - but even in the moment she seems to know it’s kind of a lost cause. However, Lilo is also really young and the narrative doesn’t give her the opportunity to solve many problems. So I would not be surprised if Lilo's secondary looks different when she gets older. She is fascinated by Stitch, and Stitch is a shapeshifter-mimic. He’s kind of a cartoon version of a Snake secondary. Maybe that's a clue that Lilo's best self is a Snake Secondary too, but she hasn’t built a bridge to that part yet. Eh, I could see it either way. Definitely an Improvisational secondary though.

NANI PELEKAI (2002)

Nani is a very Burnt Badger primary. There’s this recurring thing with her and her love interest David, where they’re kinda dating, or were dating… either way, Nani can’t quite bring herself to let him into her life. Even though she likes him, he likes her, and he even gets along with Lilo. She spends a lot of the film looking like she’s 100% focused on her little sister in a Snake primary way… but Burnt Badgers look like miserable, stressed-out Snakes, and that is absolutely Nani. She clearly used to have a big community - at one point she even tries to leverage it for a job. But I think she responded to the death of her parents by closing up, refusing to let anyone new close to her. She might lose them too, and that would hurt too much. 

This film is also really good at putting Nani in situations that would be really rough on a Badger primary specifically. Nani clearly feels deeply connected to her Hawaiian culture - she’s an accomplished hula dancer, she loves surfing, and in the most heartbreaking scene of the movie she sings “Aloha Oe” to Lilo, when she thinks child protective services are going to take her away in the morning. This is famously a song written by deposed Hawaiian Queen Lili'uokalani, after she was forced to leave her people. These are all things that Nani pulls on to give her strength. However… she is also working as an honestly quite objectified waitress/hula dancer in a theme park-ified version of Hawaii catering to tourists. She’s not happy there, and it's an important moment when she leaves. 

Even when she’s in really serious trouble, Nani can’t bring herself to tell anyone what’s going on, to get help or even just emotional support - and that's the Burnt Badger talking. When she is absolutely at her wit’s end and has no idea what to do, she grabs David and she grabs Lilo and they all go surfing. It’s that Badger primary need for community, even if there’s no way that community is going to help.

Nani is probably a Bird secondary. She practices when she's nervous and has a lot of skills - but is much more overwhelmed during the wacky finale than Lilo, and definitely needs a second to get it together and figure out the situation. She conceptualizes ‘dealing with Lilo’ as a skill that she has learned and gotten better at: she’ll build little ‘traps’ to catch her younger sister, and can translate things into “Lilo.” I think she may have constructed a bit of an Actor Bird model for dealing with her sister (and another for dealing with her boss.) Lilo will use bits of her system to argue with Nani, and clearly expects this strategy to work.  

LILO. Ohana means family. Family means no one gets left behind, or forgotten.  NANI. I hate when you use ‘ohana’ against me.

CAPTAIN AMELIA SMOLLET (2002)

If Nani and Kida share a deep connection to their cultural history, Captain Amelia and Kida share this incredibly direct, blunt, borderline rude Lion secondary. Only Amelia's is is less 'cultural misunderstanding' and more just... British.

Captain Amelia absolutely rubs Jim Hawkins and Doctor Doppler the wrong way (an occupational hazard of being a very loud Lion secondary.) But she also comes off as extremely trustworthy, which something you get from the You-Move secondaries (Lion and Badger.) Amelia is a version of Robert Louis Stevenson’s Alexander Smollett (just also a cat girl, and in space) and this bit from Treasure Island suits Treasure Planet equally well: “Contrary to all my notions, I believe you have managed to get two honest men on board with you, that man [Captain Smollet] and John Silver.” 

Of course, Captain Amelia wins over Jim and Doppler once they understand that she wants her crew to be equally direct right back at her. She wants all the information, as quickly as possible, so she can make the best decisions. Her eyes light up when Doppler tells her she’s wrong about how supernovas work... because she’s able to use the new knowledge to create a daredevil way to escape the situation. Near the end of the film, Jim comes up with a crazy solution that involves a piece of alien tech. He knows how the tech works, doesn’t have time to explain it. But because they’ve had enough practice being honest with each other, Amelia just does what he says - no questions asked.

This is also why she gets so offended when John Silver tries to flatter her… and Silver’s good at flattering. He charms his crew, he charms Jim. But Amelia tells him to “keep that kind of flim-flammery for your space court floozies” because of course the two captains on opposite sides of the mutiny are foils. Silver makes Jim feel important and special. Captain Amelia tells him point-blank when he’s being an idiot and gives him no special treatment. The nuanced position this film takes is that Jim… kinda needs both. 

In this movie about treasure hunting, Captain Amelia is the only character who doesn’t seem to care about the “Loot of a Thousand Worlds" at all. She is here to do her job, and is deeply skeptical about treasure hunting in general. Her speech at her First Mate’s funeral makes her priorities clear: “Mr. Arrow was a fine spacer. Finer than most of us can ever hope to be. But he knew the risks, as do we all. Resume your posts. We carry on.” Her highest praise is that Arrow did his job well... and part of doing your job well is making peace with the fact that you might not make it out alive. She takes her job, her title, and her ship extremely seriously. 

So, Amelia is definitely an Idealist primary, and her Cause seems to revolve around being the best captain possible and… going on adventures. This is also the case with Doppler, who she ends up with at the end. He frames his treasure hunting trip in very Badger primary language when he’s talking to Jim’s very Badger Primary mom… but in reality he just wants to go on an adventure. 

I could honestly see either Lion or Bird primary for Amelia. But, the fact that she’s ex-military and still in good enough standing to write Jim a recommendation letter makes me lean Bird. (I think a Double Lion Amelia would have burned more bridges.) Also, the rules and organizational system she lives by seem to exist outside of her in a very Commodore Norrington sort of way. It’s not something she feels internally, and this is comforting. Honestly, Amelia gives off very Commodore Norrington energy in general, and he’s a pretty loud Bird primary. 

HELEN "ELASTIGIRL" PARR (2004)

( & Bob/Mr. Incredible, Edna Mode)

Helen’s superpower is ‘flexibility,’ so of course she’s going to be an Improvisational secondary. I'm going with Lion instead of Snake because - like Captain Amelia and Kida - Helen is very comfortable being incredibly direct. She actively sets up confrontations, waits in the dark for Bob after he stays out late with Frozone, then actually gets in a plane to confront him when she thinks he’s having an affair.

Bob Parr is also a Lion secondary, and unlike Helen (who is able to turn down the volume during Dash's parent-teacher conference) he has trouble even softening what he says, phrasing it in a way that’s palatable to the person he’s talking to. That trait gets him in trouble with Buddy/Syndrome, then his boss at the insurance company, and there’s also the implication that the government keeps relocating them because Bob keeps blowing their cover. (This is 100% the case in a cut scene set at a neighborhood barbecue, where Bob appears to cut off a finger and instead breaks the knife.) 

I also think the fact that Helen and Bob are both Lion secondaries is a big part of what makes their relationship function. Lion secondaries seem to really value the opportunity to have arguments and fights… while also knowing the interaction is fundamentally safe, and isn’t going to spill over into the other parts of their life. When Bob gets back late, he and Helen fight in a way that honestly just seems like their way of blowing off steam. They’re both able to turn it off completely when the kids walk into the room. 

Helen also calls herself out for “overreacting” and has to force herself to take a moment to think when she first figures out that Bob is lying, a very Lion secondary moment. She gives Violet the insanely Lion secondary advice that “When the time comes, you’ll know what to do. It’s in your blood.” Edna Mode is also a cartoonishly loud Lion secondary, and I'll bet that shared secondary is a big part of why she adores the Parrs. Also, Helen loves her motorcycles, which at least in fiction is a very Lion-secondary coded mode of transportation.

Helen’s flexibility extends to her primary as well. When we first meet Elastigirl in the “documentary” prologue, she’s completely happy doing the superhero thing while Mr. Incredible is already thinking about settling down. But, in the main timeline of the movie, Helen seems perfectly happy doing the suburbia thing and raising the kids. Then in the sequel, after the Deavors convince her that she can do the most good by being a poster child for non-threatening Supers, she has a fantastic time doing *that.* The fact that she’s able to change her worldview so easily without having a big emotional crisis about it (the way that Bob does) makes me think she’s probably a Bird primary. That difference in primaries seems to be where most of the friction in their relationship comes from. 

Helen actually tells us her philosophy in the sequel: “If laws are unjust there are laws to change them, otherwise it’s chaos” and “World is what it is, we have to adapt.” It’s a bit Badger flavored - work within the system, adapt to the system - but the way she lays it out is Bird. And then she gets a little tipsy and starts debating philosophy with the villain for fun. Which is a very Bird primary activity.

VIOLET PARR (2004)

(& Dash)

Violet feels very at odds with both her family and her world… and since she’s a Badger primary, that’s especially rough. She wants to fit into a community, but there is no community for her. She’s the only member of the family who actively does not want powers: “We act normal, Mom! I want to be normal (...) What do you know about normal? What does anyone in this family know about normal?” We also get the line, ��Mom and Dad’s lives might be in danger, or worse - their marriage.” Which is definitely a joke about Violet’s slightly cartoonish Badger primary priorities. 

It makes absolute sense that she’s so hung up on the idea of popular dreamboat Tony, at the center of so much community, since that's exactly what she wants. And because she herself is very not normal, she tries to hide - both with her superpower and with her hair. Violet is the first computer animated character who wears their hair long and loose, and the animators put in the effort because it’s so tied in with her character. As she gets more and more in tune with her family over the course of the film, the way Violet wears her hair changes. Her mom tucks it behind her ear, her dad comments that he likes this new way she’s wearing it better. She eventually pushes it back with a headband because she’s not hiding from them anymore. Violet is happy and effective being a part of the superhero team that is her family. It’s interesting that her powers (invisiblity, creating force-fields around herself) are fantastic support/team-attack powers, but not that useful on their own.

However, one more source of friction between Violet and the rest of the family is that she’s the only non-Lion secondary. Her little brother Dash is a Lion. (He’s probably a Double Lion like his father, they’ve both even got a little of that Glory Hound Lion primary thing.) But Violet’s powers keep her out of sight, she is the opposite of confrontational. It took me a second to recognize her as a Snake secondary, because most fictional Snakes are much more comfortable around people…  but Violet is also in a less-than-ideal situation. Still, she is observant, good at picking up on what’s going on around her, and uses those things to solve problems. It’s her idea to track down Syndrome using the coordinates he’s put in the rocket, and in the sequel she’s the one who figures out how to use Jack Jack like a gun, and successfully turns the out-of-control ship around.

Violet is sneaky, using her abilities to spy on her parents and stow away on her mom's trip. She doesn’t like using her snake secondary at other people - she’s very self-contained - but she is more than happy to direct it out at the world. Violet is also perceptive when it comes to people, and will often just come right out and say things like “Are we going to talk about it… the elephant in the room” or “I think Dad has made some excellent progress today, but I think it’s time we wind down now.” Which can look a little like Lion... but in this case, it's definitely Neutral Snake.

Tl;dr

Jane ~  Snake / Snake, models Badger / Badger

Tarzan ~ Snake / Bird

Kerchack ~ Badger / Lion 

Kida ~ Badger / Lion 

King Kashekim ~ Snake / Burnt Lion 

Milo ~ Burnt Lion / Bird

Lilo ~ Bird / Lion (possibly Bird / Snake) 

Nani ~ Burnt Badger / Bird

Captain Amelia ~ Bird / Lion 

Helen/Elastigirl ~ Bird / Lion

Violet ~ Badger / Snake

Dash ~ Lion / Lion 

Bob/Mr. Incredible ~ Lion / Lion

Edna Mode ~ Bird / Lion 

(art credit to Cursed Concepts for the beautiful pins I have used to illustrate this series.)

[goodd4yss]

snulciber meets romcoms/disney films

since i’d most probably never write it myself

some of these ideas may be a little tough to work around, but the movie plot is only the gist of it, it can be worked around/ignored past a certain point. please let me know if you decide to write!

- ten things i hate about you

lily’s mum says she can’t date until her best friend, severus, dates as well. too bad james potter wants to take her to the yule ball! he decides to pay bruce mulciber, resident slytherin bad boy, to date snape so that he can finally be with lily. (au: no voldemort / hogwarts sixth year / SS/BM and LE/RL endgame)

- pretty woman

bruce mulciber, a wealthy businessman, hires down on his luck, prostitute severus snape, to stay with him for the week. as they become closer, the two try to overcome the large differences between their two worlds. (au: perchance no magic?/ SS/BM endgame)

- notting hill

severus snape, a potioneer who owned a small apocathery in notting hill, has his life turned upside down when famous actor bruce mulciber stumbles onto his store, and severus greets him again by pooring a drink all over him a week later. (au: no voldemort / evan rosier as roommate)

- the proposal

severus snape hated his boss, bruce mulciber, with a passion. he was a hard ass, never allowing severus enough of a break to visit family back in spinner’s end (family meaning eileen and the evans’). so when mulciber is facing deportation back to canada, he lies about a false engagement to his assistant, severus snape. (au: no voldemort / SS/BM endgame)

not sure how this would work, however. could it be changed to american severus/british severus living abroad.

- high school musical

nerdy severus meets quidditch player bruce mulciber during the summer before his sixth year at a party lily insisted on dragging him to. they hit it off, but unfortunately never ended up exchanging numbers, and severus had resigned to never seeing him again. what a surprise when he bumps into him again at his new school, hogwarts, in september. (au: no voldemort / SS/BM endgame / female gryffindor as sharpay evans?)

- tangled

severus is sure he’ll never be able to leave his tower, until the annoying thief, bruce mulciber, climbs up his tower. together, they embark on a journey to allow severus to finally see the lights that shone every year on his birthday. (au: no wizarding world / snapes hair glows)

- the lion king

his father frames him for his mother, the queen’s, murder. not knowing what to do, eleven year old severus runs away, leaving the kingdom to be ruled by his evil father. he meets lily and charity, who grow up with him and teach him how to live until mulciber, his childhood friend finds him hunting alone. (au: no voldemort - or maybe voldemort (his uncle in this storyline perchance) murders his parents and he is now ruler)

- the little mermaid

all severus longed for was to be on land. too bad for him, his father wouldn’t ever allow it. luckily, however, he has an aunt (or uncle) proficient in magic who would grant his wish to be with his crush, prince bruce mulciber, on land. a shame he has to lose his voice for it to happen!

[insanityclause]

EXCLUSIVE: Oscar-winning producers See-Saw Films (The King’s Speech) are gearing up on Tenzing, about the inspirational life of Sherpa Tenzing Norgay and his summit of Mount Everest in 1953 alongside fellow outsider New Zealander Edmund Hillary.

A search is currently underway to cast the lead role of Tenzing Norgay who will star alongside BAFTA-nominated Tom Hiddleston (Loki) as Sir Edmund Hillary, and Oscar winner Willem Dafoe (Poor Things) as the English expedition leader, Colonel John Hunt.

Tenzing comes from filmmaker Jennifer Peedom who has the exclusive rights to tell Tenzing’s story via his family and has a close relationship with the Sherpa community after making acclaimed documentary Sherpa.

Script comes from Oscar-nominated Luke Davies (Lion) and producers are Liz Watts, Emile Sherman and Iain Canning for See-Saw Films, alongside Jennifer Peedom and Luke Davies. Executive producers are Simon Gillis, David Michôd and Norbu Tenzing.

Tibetan born Tenzing Norgay, alongside New Zealand mountaineer Edmund Hillary, both outsiders on a British Expedition, defied insurmountable odds to achieve what was once thought impossible, reaching the summit of the world’s tallest mountain, Mount Everest. After six previous attempts, Tenzing risked everything for one final venture. He had to navigate treacherous politics and perilous weather as he embarked on the most significant climb of his life. Through it all, he did so with humor, warmth, and generosity towards his fellow climbers, but also deep reverence and respect for the sacred Mother Goddess of his Mountain, Chomolungma.

This will be one of the hot projects at next week’s Cannes market where Rocket Science will be handling international sales in partnership with Cross City Films, See-Saw’s in-house sales arm. UTA Independent Film Group and Cross City Films are co-repping the U.S. sale. We understand filming is being lined up for spring 2025.

Peedom, known for her intimate portraits against epic landscapes, including documentaries Solo, Sherpa and Mountain, said: “I could not be more thrilled to be bringing Tenzing Norgay’s story to the screen. I’ve been working towards this film my whole career, and I’m incredibly grateful to Tenzing’s family for entrusting me with it. I am excited to work with See-Saw Films and our amazing cast to bring this story to life. Tom Hiddleston and Willem Dafoe are two of the most generous and talented actors in the business, so pairing them with our brilliant Himalayan cast is going to be electric. I have no doubt this film will resonate widely. We all have our own mountains to climb, and this film shows us what human beings are truly capable of.”

Producers Emile Sherman and Iain Canning added: “We are so excited to embark on this exhilarating ascent led by one of the most inspirational directors we’ve encountered, Jennifer Peedom. Her award-winning experience in the world of high-altitude filmmaking, alongside her unique relationship with the Sherpa community and her masterful storytelling skills make her the perfect director for this film.”

Norbu Tenzing, son of Tenzing Norgay, commented: “Jen is somebody who has earned the respect of our people, understands the community, and is deeply immersed in our culture. She’s a great human being and someone that we trust, and she has had a lifelong interest in the story of my father Tenzing Norgay. I am delighted that she has taken on this project and can’t wait for the world to see who my father was.”

Hiddleston is represented by UTA, Hamilton Hodell, and Johnson Shapiro Slewett & Kole. Willem Dafoe is represented by WME, The Artist Partnership, and Circle of Confusion.

[blogdeepbelieverbouquetworld]

David Tennant on the set of Thursday Murder Club, filming an outdoor scene at the Red Lion pub, surrounded by film crew and equipment. The British actor is seen preparing for his role in the crime drama adaptation at the historic location, blending cinematic flair with the quaint charm of the setting.

[mxmoth]

FAVORITE HORROR FILMS | THE WICKER MAN (1973) British Lion Films, Dir. Robin Hardy Edward Woodward, Britt Ekland, Ingrid Pitt, Christopher Lee

[ninja-muse]

As you can tell, my plan to acquire only two books this month went perfectly. No notes. 😰 On the upside, four of these I did not pay for and only one of them was full price, so it’s like I saved money.

I really do need to get better at reading off my physical TBR though. I’ve started a Storygraph challenge for myself, so we’ll see how that goes.

July started with a bookish bang: there was the planned bookstore visit (three books bought, not two, but I unhauled ten and used my credit), and then my dad came down so we could marathon the local Shakespeare festival, which was great! And somehow not the Shakespeare overdose I was worried about, and they nailed the play we were worried they weren’t going to.

After that, it’s been business as usual. I feel like I’m behind in my reading because Malady of the Mind took so long to get through, but honestly, I suspect I’m not because I’ve been blowing through lighter fiction on the side. The library’s finally getting April releases into circulation though, so I’ve had physical reads from them again. (Which will totally help my physical TBR goals, I know.) Very much looking forward to The Library Thief, which I picked up this week.

The only other noteworthy thing of the month is I discovered my library has an ebook of Rose/House by Arkady Martine! Except it’s in French, so it’s been taking me a bit to get through. I might not even get it done before it’s due back, but if so I’ll just check it out again because it is good, just … in French.

Click through to see everything I read this month, in the rough order of how glad I was to have read them.

Malady of the Mind - Jeffery A. Lieberman

A history of schizophrenia, with a hopeful ending.

10/10

warning: detailed descriptions of the symptoms of schizophrenia and past and present medical and societal treatments of the mentally ill

reading copy

The Reappearance of Rachel Price - Holly Jackson

Bel’s participating in a documentary about the disappearance of her mother sixteen years ago when her mom walks back in the door. Now nothing is okay.

8.5/10

Black British secondary character

warning: kidnapping, gaslighting, psychological abuse

library ebook

The Pairing - Casey McQuiston

Theo is over Kit. Four years over, which means there’s enough distance to take their dream European food tour solo and close the book. Except Kit had the same idea. Out in August.

8/10

🏳️‍🌈 protagonists (bi man, bi enby), 🏳️‍🌈 secondary and incidental characters (sapphic, achillean), 🏳️‍🌈 author

reading copy

Dear Wendy - Ann Zhao

Two aroace teens start competing college advice columns. Professionally they’re rivals. Unknowingly, they’re becoming friends.

7/10

🏳️‍🌈 protagonists (aroace), Chinese-American protagonist, 🏳️‍🌈 secondary characters (lesbian, bi, demisexual), Indian-American secondary character, Black secondary character, Latin secondary character, Chinese-American author, 🏳️‍🌈 author

warning: aceophobia

library book

Goodnight Tokyo - Atsuhiro Yoshida

Interwoven stories about nighttime life in Tokyo. A prop procurer seeks the perfect items, a crack detective seeks his father’s films, a diner owner seeks a past customer, and more.

7/10

Japanese cast, Japanese author

reading copy

Peking Duck and Cover - Vivien Chien

Lana’s helping run the Chinese New Year celebrations at Asia Village and everything’s going great—until someone kills a lion dancer.

7/10

Taiwanese-American protagonist, largely Chinese-American cast, Taiwanese-American author

warning: gun violence

borrowed from work

The Tomb of the Mili Mongga - Samuel Turvey

A conservationist seeking fossils in Indonesia is sidetracked by a local legend of a giant wild man, and along the way muses on extinction, human cultures, folklore, and our place in the world.

7.5/10

Indonesian secondary characters

library book

My Love in Stitches, Vol. 1 - Emily Gossmann

Frankie’s trying to get her life together when she meets Momo, but dating her is going to be hard. First, she needs a job, and also their friends are dead set on keeping them apart….

7/10

🏳️‍🌈 protagonists (sapphic), 🏳️‍🌈 secondary characters (sapphic), 🏳️‍🌈 author, 🇨🇦

kickstarted/off my TBR

The Dishonest Miss Take - Faye Murphy

Desperate to clear her name after a murder she didn't commit, a superpowered former villain stumbles onto a mystery—and a curious assassin. Out in September.

5.5/10

🏳️‍🌈 protagonist (sapphic), 🏳️‍🌈 secondary character (sapphic)

digital reading copy/won

Picture Books

It’s Raining Bats & Frogs - Rebecca Colby

The witch parade is in danger of being rained out but one young witch has the solution. Or does she?

Scorch, Hedgehog of Doom - Cate Berry

Scorch is going to be the biggest, baddest hedgehog ever, no matter what.

Into the Goblin Market - Vikki VanSickle

Two sisters live near the goblin market. When one seeks out its temptations, the other follows to save her.

Reread

Timeline - Michael Crichton

In the late 1990s, a tech company finds a way to send people to the Hundred Years’ War. Immediately, things go wrong.

7/10

warning: misogyny, attempted sexual violence

library ebook

Currently reading

A Gentleman from Japan - Thomas Lockley

The true story of a Japanese man who found himself at the court of Elizabeth I.

warning: slavery, orientalism

library book

Rose/House - Arkady Martine

There is a body within Rose House—two, if you count its architect, who ordered the house shuttered with his passing and left to its AI. Only one person is allowed to enter now, and she’s accounted for. And yet there is a body within Rose House….

library ebook

Music from the Earliest Notations to the Sixteenth Century - Richard Taruskin

A history of early written European music, in its social and political contexts.

The Penguin Complete Sherlock Holmes - Arthur Conan Doyle

Victorian detective stories.

disabled POV character (limb injury), occasional Indian secondary characters

warning: racism, colonialism

Monthly total: 9 + 1 + 3 Yearly total: 68 Queer books: 4 Authors of colour: 3 Books by women: 5 Authors outside the binary: 1 Canadian authors: 1 Classics: 0 Off the TBR shelves: 1 Books hauled: 11 ARCs acquired: 4 ARCs unhauled: 4 DNFs: 0

January February March April May June

[tenzingfilm]

In a big deal that closed in the days leading into this week’s Cannes market, Apple Original Films has landed worldwide rights to Tenzing, the new package we told you about last week starring Tom Hiddleston and Willem Dafoe.

The question we asked today was whether the U.S. buyers would come to play for the Cannes market projects and we have an answer already.

Oscar-winning producer See-Saw Films (The King’s Speech) is producing Tenzing, about the inspirational life of Sherpa Tenzing Norgay and his summit of Mount Everest in 1953 alongside fellow outsider New Zealander Edmund Hillary.

A search is underway to cast the lead role of Tenzing Norgay who will star alongside BAFTA-nominated Tom Hiddleston (Loki) as Sir Edmund Hillary and four-time Oscar nominee Willem Dafoe (Poor Things) as the English expedition leader, Colonel John Hunt.

Tenzing comes from filmmaker Jennifer Peedom who has the exclusive rights to tell Tenzing’s story via his family and has a close relationship with the Sherpa community after making acclaimed documentary Sherpa.

Script comes from Oscar-nominated Luke Davies (Lion) and producers are Liz Watts, Emile Sherman and Iain Canning for See-Saw Films, alongside Jennifer Peedom and Luke Davies. Executive producers are Simon Gillis, David Michôd and Norbu Tenzing.

Rocket Science was handling international sales in partnership with Cross City Films, See-Saw’s in-house sales arm. UTA Independent Film Group and Cross City Films were co-repping the U.S. sale and brokered the Apple deal. We understand filming is being lined up for spring 2025.

The project was being touted to buyers as having a budget in the $25M range. We hear it skews more intriguing character piece than an action-packed Everest-type but there will be a number of climbing sequences.

Tibetan born Tenzing Norgay, alongside New Zealand mountaineer Edmund Hillary, both outsiders on a British Expedition, defied insurmountable odds to achieve what was once thought impossible, reaching the summit of the world’s tallest mountain, Mount Everest. After six previous attempts, Tenzing risked everything for one final venture. He had to navigate treacherous politics and perilous weather as he embarked on the most significant climb of his life. Through it all, he did so with humor, warmth, and generosity towards his fellow climbers, but also deep reverence and respect for the sacred Mother Goddess of his Mountain, Chomolungma.

Peedom is known for her intimate portraits against epic landscapes, including documentaries Solo, Sherpa and Mountain.

[thealmightyemprex]

Fantasy month:Middle Earthathon Part 2 Lord of the Rings 1978

Ah this movie,the first theatrical feature length adaptation of Tolkien .There are a lot of fans who dont like this movie ...I am happy to say I love this films,warts and all.Its an important part of Rings history that folks either goof on or ignore and while I get it , I think there is a lot to love about Ralph Bakshis Lord of the Rings

Also shout out to my friend @the-blue-fairie who is also a fan of this film

In this 1978 film Frodo Baggins (Christopher Guard ) is informed by the Wizard Gandalf (William Squire ) that he has gained posession of the One Ring which is sought by the forces of Mordor , and eventually must partake in a quest o destroy it

So I actually saw this film as a kid.I saw FEllowship of the Ring in theaters and I wanted more Lord of The Rings,but the films werent out on DVD yet ,I was too young for the books ,and to my limited 2001 knowledge there was no other LOTR stuff....Till me and my grandmother went to the local blockbuster and found ......Another version of Lord of the Rings on VHS .I immediately rented it and to my surprise it was an animated film that adapted not only Fellowship but the next book as well the Two Towers ,so I felt like I was getting a sneak peak at what the next film held like Gollum,Treebeard,Gandalfs return,etc .I actually think I might have seen this film sleightly more then the Jackson trilogy (Mainly due to it being shorter )

Now the main thing to point out about the anijmation is it is done through Rotoscope,a process where you take live action refrence footage and draw over it,which can lead to very realistic movement .This films use of it is devisive to say the least .I personally like the rotoscoping it gives the film a unique look thoughI do feel they might have stuck to close to refrence costumes ,when I think they couldve gone a bit more creative ,especially in the creature designs ,cause the orcs legit look like guys in costumes and wow does the Balrog cetainly look like a winged lion guy .I have heard some folks say the character costumes look a bit generic ,but I actually kind of enjoy that asopect ,like I dunno why Boromir is a viking or why Elrond is a Roman Emperor ,but I kind of dig it

So Lord of the Rings has a LOT of characters and I cant go every single member of the cast .The cast consist of several British theater actors (A lot of them having appeared on Doctor Who ,like a majority of the cast was on Doctor Who at some point) and the cast has a few notable names,being who's who of "OH that guy !".....So I am gonna start with the "HEy that guy"s that stood out to me then wrap back around to other primary characters

John Westbrook (Who I know as the REd DEath in Roger Cormans Masque of the Red Death ) makes a brief appearence as Tree Beard ,and I feel his wonderful deep voice fits the character (I have seen a few folks assume hes Christopher Lee but its not,its John Westbrook he just happens to sound a lot like him )

Andre Morell (A very accomplished actor who I mostly know for playing opposite Peter Cushing in Nineteen Eighty Four,Hound of the Baskervilles and Cash on Demand )plays Elrond ,giving a commanding and dignified presence to the elf .SAdly he passed a way shortly after the films release,.....WEird coincidence same also happened to Cyril Richard who played Elrond in the Hobbit

Alan Tilvern (PRobably best known as RK Maroon in Who Framed Roger Rabbit ) plays the Inkeeper and he brings a good nature but also some bumblingness to the role

Annette Crosby (An actress no stranger to fantasy playing the Fairy Godmother in Slipper and the Rose and Granny WEatherwax in Cosgrove Halls adaptation of Terry Pratchett Wyrd Sisters ) is MARVELOUS as Galadrial ,I actually like her a bit more then Cate Blanchett in the Jackson film.I really dig the Pool of Galadrian scene in general and her amused reaction to Fordo offering her the ring

Phillip Stone (A regular of Stanley Kubrick ,most notable for bring the menacing Delbert Grady in the Shinning ) brings a wearyness but also a kingly strength as Theoden ,I think he really does a greta job

David Buck(Who I know for being one of the Skeksis in the Dark Crystal) is a very solid Gimli,not many lines but I like how Gimili is characterized as Buck makes his few lines count.Great animation moment ,is when Gandalf tells Gimli his cousin Blin died,and wordlessly you see the heartbreak on Gimlis face before he wanders off to be alone

Now we get to the four most noteworthy castings:Gollum,Boromir ,Legolas ,and Aragorn .

Legolas is played by Anthony Daniels AKA C3P0 from Star Wars ,in a very rare film apparence that has nothing to do with that frsanchise .Hes also the only actor from the film I have seen discuss the film ,where he discussed his disappointment in Legolas being blonde and how if he had known that he wouldve played it diffrently.....I have no clue what that means .Anyway,I actually like Daniels voice as Legolas ,and I like how friendly he can be whether it is reuniting with Aragorn or his quieter moments with Gimli ,while also working in the serious moments where hes sensing danger

Boromir is played by Michael Graham Cox who I know as Big Wig in my favorite animated film Watership Down .Honestly performance wise ,I think Cox is one of the best ones in the film ,you feel him as a proud warrior who just wants to help his people ,but also his corruption and eventual guilt.His last stand against the orcs is an amazing scenes,it feels grizzly ,and theres a moment where he lets out this kind of warrior scream that has stuck with me .So Cox is really good and I think Brian Selby and the BBC thought so too .....CAuse he played the role again in the excellent 1981 BBC radio version

Peter Woodthorpe best known to me for playing a villainous hypnotist in The Evil of Frankenstein and Old Joe in the George C SCott Christmas Carol,plays Gollum,and like Michael Graham Cox he reprised the role in the BBC production.Gonna be completely hones,I love Woodthropes Gollum .....In the radio production ,I think hes a bit better there,but he also good in the film ,just more subdued but still showcasing his madness.I think hes very creepy and enjoy him both here and in the radio version

And now lets get to the BIGGEST name in the film:legendary actor John Hurt ,who even back then was a name actor and I just gotta say,,,,,He is MY Aragorn ,no9 disrespect to Robert Stephens from the radio production or Viggo Mortensen from the Jackson films who both do a fabulous job as well,but this is one of my favorite performances by Hurt .He exudes sterength,confidence,but also moments of doubt ,be mysetious but has a warmth .When I think of Hurt as an actor I tend to think of victims and villains ,so the fact he had this chance to play a heroic character is pretty awesome and he gets some pretty great line reads favorite being "Then we must do without hope,there is always vengence ! "

I actually dont have much to say about most of the rest of the cast (Simon Chandler and Dominic Guard are pretty decent as Merry and Pippin while Frazer Ker for me is a bit to saturday morning villains as Saruman......Or Aruman,yeah due to executive meddling ,they kep switching from callrng him Saruman and Aruman ) so lets get onto three of the primary characters I havent talked about yet

William Squire is pretty good as Gandalf ,a bit over the top,but I feel one needs to ham it up if your playing a wizard .I do love how he casually flicks the ring in the fire .Will admit I do wish they were able to get their original choice Alan Napier (Who I feel wouldve been a great Gandalf ) ,but Squire is a very good Gandal

Now lets talk about the most hated element in the film....Sam .Michael Scholes plays Sam ,and he plays him very...Comical ,Sams comic relief ,and I dont hate it like other people do but it is a very strange take on Samwise.That said I am curious ,if Bakshi did do a sequel how this Sam would handle the more heroic elements

However if the film does a character really well,,,,,Its Friodo .Christopher Guard delivers on the journey from almost niave to world weary yet having this inner strength .When being chased by the Black Riders ,weak due to a wound ,him standing up against them is very powerful and my heart breaks at his final scene where he discusses for him its just about getting to Mount Doom and not returning .While Ian Holm is my favorite Frodo in the radio production ,Chritopher Guard is a close second and I so wish he got to finish the character arc

I've mentioned a few favorite moments such as the pool of Gladrial and Boromirs last stand but other scenes and elements that I love here are

1.The Black Riders.Of all the villains here,I think they are the most effective ,very creepy and intimidating with the best moment being them attacking the beds (Which Jackson borrowed for his film

2.Boromirs Death ,which is just heart breaking and I especially love the look on Aragorns face

3.Lothlorian ,just seeing the character,even if briefly just relax and bond after the trials in Moria.I especially love Frodo listening to the song about Gandalf and admitting "We knew so little of him in the Shire ,he was just Gandalf to us " and Aragorn assuring him that the old wizard liked of all his names Gandalf the best ,like Awwww thats so sweet !!!!

If I have a complaint ,other then "God I wish Bakshi made part two".....Its that I think the Fellowship of the Ring parts are stronger then the Two Towers parts .Once Boromir dies it does drag a little

That said I love this movie and do reccomend it to fans of the Jackson film or books .I got a soft spot for it

@ariel-seagull-wings @themousefromfantasyland @countesspetofi

@amalthea9 @theancientvaleofsoulmaking @princesssarisa

@barbossas-wench @princesssarisa

[glennk56]

Peter Wight, fat British actor. When he first appeared on TV, he was a thin to averaged-sized man. I'm guessing, but I'd say he let himself get bigger because in the UK, unlike in the US, there is a demand for portly, mature men in the acting world.

Photos.

1996 (at an event).

2003 Three Blind Mice.

2003. My Family S4E4.

2005. Waking the Dead S5E9.

2006. The Gil Mayo Mysteries S1E8.

2008. Lark Rise to Candleford S1E3.

2010. Another Year.

2011. Accused S1E3.

2011. at The London Film Critic Circle Awards.

(same)

2011. My Week With Marilyn.

2012. Titanic (4 part Mini-Series)

2013. theatre production; Much Ado About Nothing.

2013. The Paradise S1E6.

(don't know)

2015. theatre production; The Red Lion.

2017. theatre production;Hamlet.

2017. (at an event).

2018. theatre production; The Birthday Party.

(same)

2018. Vanity Fsir S1E6.

(same)

2019. A Confession (Mini-Series)

(same).

(same).

2021. Cyrano.

(same)

2022. His Dark Materials. S3E4.

1978. The Sweeney S4E13.