#Rachel Clare chan

[deathnote-dramanmusical]

Death Note: The Musical London CAST!

Joaquin Pedro Valdes- Light Yagami Dean John-Wilson- L Frances Mayli McCann -Misa Amane Adam Pascal- Ryuk Aimie Atkinson- Rem Rachel Clare Chan- Sayu Yagami Ray Marbella- Soichiro Yagami

DNTheMusical will play two concerts at The London Palladium on 21 and 22 august 2023.

[normalaboutdntm]

5/24/24 update

Rachel Clare Chan (Sayu) and Dean John Wilson (L) confirmed for the West End run of Your Lie in April:

This doesn't directly confirm anything of course, but it strengthens my assumption that we won't get any news on the West End run of DNTM until YLIA finishes in September. Hopefully we'll be getting the DNTM cast album before then, but honestly I won't be surprised if we don't; I'm sure the delay is due to resource conflict with YLIA otherwise we would have gotten it by now.

[meandmypagancrew]

Creepy Tsubaki, Creepy Sayu, Creepy Watari, and Creepy L all done for Rachel Clare Chan and Dean John Wilson this weekend!

[probablygayattorneys]

I showed this video to my mom because we’re buying tickets to see this musical and she said “It’s just like that guy you like!”

Additional probing revealed “that guy [I] like” is…. Barok van Zieks

[sassysnowglobe]

Audio gift: Death Note the Musical at the London Palladium - 22 August 2023 matinee.

Cast: Joaquin Pedro Valdes (Light), Dean John-Wilson (L), Frances Mayli McCann (Misa), Adam Pascal (Ryuk), Aimee Atkinson (Rem), Rachel Clare Chan (Sayu), Christian Ray Marbella (Soichiro)

[battyaboutbooksreviews]

🌸 Books for AAPI Month

❤️ Celebrate Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month with this list featuring some of the FEW empowering, vibrant stories written by AAPI authors or starring AAPI protagonists.

🌸 What books did you read for AAPI month?

✨ 2024 Releases ❤️ Night for Day - Roselle Lim 🌸 The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years - Shubnum Khan 🏮The Great Reclamation - Rachel Heng ❤️ Lies and Weddings - Kevin Kwan 🌸 Valley Verified - Kyla Zhao 🏮 The Catch - Amy Lea ❤️ Your Utopia - Bora Chung 🌸 Tehrangeles - Porochista Khakpour 🏮 Horse Barbie - Geena Rocero ❤️ Memory Piece - Lisa Ko 🌸 The Fetishist - Katherine Min 🏮 Real Americans - Rachel Khong ❤️ The Kamogawa Food Detectives - Hisashi Kashiwai 🌸 Manila Takes Manhattan - Carla de Guzman 🏮 The Last Phi Hunter - Salinee Goldenberg and Ilya Nazarov ❤️ May the Best Player Win - Kyla Zhao 🌸 Are You Nobody Too? - Tina Cane 🏮 The Design of Us - Sajni Patel ❤️ Welcome to the Hyunam-Dong Bookshop - Hwang Bo-Reum 🌸 Heir - Sabaa Tahir 🏮 Maya's Laws of Love - Alina Khawaj ❤️ Midnights with You - Clare Osongco 🌸 Vilest Things - Chloe Gong 🏮 This Place is Magic - Irene Te ❤️ Guilt and Ginataan - Mia P. Manansal 🌸 Icon and Inferno - Marie Lu 🏮 Calling of Light - Lori M. Lee ❤️ Bite Me, Royce Taslim - Lauren Ho 🌸 Rules for Rule Breaking - Talia Tucker 🏮 What's Eating Jackie Oh? - Patricia Park ❤️ How to End a Love Story - Yulin Kuang 🌸 Dark Star Burning, Ash Falls White - Amélie Wen Zhao 🏮 This Is How You Fall in Love - Anika Hussain ❤️ Just Playing House - Farah Heron 🌸 The Boyfriend Wish - Swati Teerdhala 🏮 A Tempest of Tea - Hafsah Faizal

✨ Romance ❤️ Dating Dr. Dil - Nisha Sharma 🌸 King of Wrath - Ana Huang 🏮 The Kiss Quotient - Helen Hoang ❤️ Girl Gone Viral - Alisha Rai 🌸 Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors - Sonali Dev 🏮 Role Playing - Cathy Yardley ❤️ The Hurricane Wars - Thea Guanzon 🌸 Ayesha at Last - Uzma Jalaluddin

✨ Fantasy ❤️ She Who Became the Sun - Shelley Parker-Chan 🌸 Babel - R.F. Kuang 🏮 Daughter of the Moon Goddess - Sue Lynn Tan ❤️ The Deep Sky - Yume Kitasei 🌸 The Jasmine Throne - Tasha Suri 🏮 Kaikeyi - Vaishnavi Patel ❤️ Light from Uncommon Stars - Ryka Aoki 🌸 Klara and the Sun - Kazuo Ishiguro

✨ Mystery ❤️ Arsenic and Adobo - Mia P. Manansala 🌸 Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers - Jesse Q. Sutanto 🏮 The Cartographers - Peng Shepherd ❤️ Miracle Creek - Angie Kim 🌸 A Disappearance in Fiji - Nilima Rao 🏮 The Leftover Woman - Jean Kwok ❤️ The Widows of Malabar Hill - Sujata Massey 🌸 Things We Do in the Dark - Jennifer Hillier

✨ Young Adult ❤️ The Wrath and the Dawn - Renée Ahdieh 🌸 All My Rage - Sabaa Tahir 🏮 Forget Me Not - Alyson Derrick ❤️ Hani and Ishu’s Guide to Fake Dating - Adiba Jaigirdar 🌸 These Violent Delights - Chloe Gong 🏮 This Book Won't Burn - Samira Ahmed ❤️ American Betiya - Anuradha D. Rajurkar 🌸 Dragonfruit - Makiia Lucier

[nofututrenopast]

Death Note in Concert

Death Note in Concert Opening Night | Palladium Run | 21 August 2023 | NFT until 23 Jan unless purchased through me (£5) | M4A Untracked | Nofuturenopast Aimie Atkinson (Rem), Frances Mayli McCann (Misa), Joaquin Pedro Valdes (Light), Dean John Wilson (L), Christian Rey Marbella (Soichiro), Rachel Clare Chan (Sayu), Adam Pascal (Ryuk), Felipe Bejarano (Mogi), Yojiro Ichikawa (Ukita), Eu Jin Hwang (Matsuda), David Kar-Hing Lee (Lind L Tailor), Nick Len (Ide), Marcel Li-Ping (Aizawa), Jojo Meredith (Haley Belle), Janine Somicio (Ensemble), Jasmine Leung (Ensemble), Deena Kapadia (Ensemble), Jade Copas (Ensemble), Charlotte Coggin (Ensemble) Notes: Some background noise in act one due to latecomer in the row. If you want this please PM me directly - still recovering from the drive crash so my site is under construction

[sherwoodknights]

Death Note 22/08/23 matinee performance- London Palladium

Cast: Joaquin Pedro Valdes (Light), Dean John Wilson (L), Adam Pascal (Ryuk), Frances Mayli McCann (Misa), Aimee Atkinson (Rem), Christian Rey Marbella (Sochiro), Rachel Clare Chan (Sayu)

Full audio of both acts

Some mic issues during the performance, especially at the beginning of lines

Available for trade, DM me if interested, I'll respond ASAP

P.s. I'm pretty new to trading and not picky at all so I'd like to think I'll be easy to trade with

[musicalelf22]

Death Note The Musical London audios available for trade

My masters of Death Note The Musical performed at the London Palladium. Please email musicalelf22@gmail.com

West End Concert (Palladium) - 21st August 2023 - MusicalElf22's master

M4A / 320 MB / untracked 

CAST: Joaquin Pedro Valdes (Light), Dean John Wilson (L), Frances Mayli McCann (Misa), Adam Pascal (Ryuk), Aimie Atkinson (Rem), Christian Rey Marbella (Soichiro), Rachel Clare Chan (Sayu), Felipe Bejarano (Mogi), Yojiro Ichikawa (Ukita), Eu Jin Hwang (Matsuda), Nick Len (Ide), Marcel Li-Ping (Aizawa), Jojo Meredith (Haley Belle), David Kar-Hing Lee (Lind L Tailor), Janine Somicio (Ensemble), Jasmine Leung (Ensemble), Deena Kapadia (Ensemble), Jade Copas (Ensemble), Charlotte Coggin (Ensemble)

NOTES: There are some moments in both acts where the microphones aren't turned on, this mostly effects the ensemble cast.

​

West End Concert (Palladium) - 22nd August 2023 (matinee) - MusicalElf22's master

M4A / 309 MB / untracked

CAST: Joaquin Pedro Valdes (Light), Dean John Wilson (L), Frances Mayli McCann (Misa), Adam Pascal (Ryuk), Aimie Atkinson (Rem), Christian Rey Marbella (Soichiro), Rachel Clare Chan (Sayu), Felipe Bejarano (Mogi), Yojiro Ichikawa (Ukita), Eu Jin Hwang (Matsuda), Nick Len (Ide), Marcel Li-Ping (Aizawa), Jojo Meredith (Haley Belle), David Kar-Hing Lee (Lind L Tailor), Janine Somicio (Ensemble), Jasmine Leung (Ensemble), Deena Kapadia (Ensemble), Jade Copas (Ensemble), Charlotte Coggin (Ensemble)

NOTES: A few instances where microphones weren't turned on at the start of lines. Sound muffles at curtain call where I popped my phone in my bag but catches the music they play at the very end as well.

[smalltownfae]

Series Update:

Completed:

Realm of the Elderlings by Robin Hobb

First Law by Joe Abercrombie

Shattered Sea by Joe Abercrombie

The Queen’s Thief by Megan Whalen Turner (except short stories)

Howl’s Moving Castle trilogy by Diana Wynne Jones

The Chronicles of Prydain by Lloyd Alexander

The Greenhollow Duology by Emily Tesh

Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien

Xenogenesis/Lilith’s Brood trilogy by Octavia E. Butler

Earthseed by Octavia E. Butler

Shades of Magic by V.E. Schwab

The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang

Captive Prince by C.S. Pacat

Six of Crows duology by Leigh Bardugo

Wildwood by Juliet Marillier

O Ceptro de Aerzis by Inês Botelho

St. Clare’s by Enid Blyton

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling

Raybearer by Jordan Ifueko

His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman

Petshop of Horrors by Matsuri Akino

Petshop of Horrors: Tokyo by Matsuri Akino

Goodnight Punpun by Asano Inio

Azumanga Daioh by Kiyohiko Azuma

Our Dreams at Dusk by Yuhki Kamatani

Demon Diary by Kara

Life by Suenobu Keiko

Pandora Hearts by Jun Mochizuki

Kaze to Ki no Uta (The Poem of Wind and Trees) by Keiko Takemiya

Pluto by Naoki Urasawa

Monster by Naoki Urasawa

20th Century Boys by Naoki Urasawa

Yuureitou by Taro Nogizaka

Ibitsu by Haruto Ryo

Death Note by Tsugumi Ohba

Fruits Basket by Natsuki Takaya

Butsu Zone by Hiroyuki Takei

Shaman King by Hiroyuki Takei

Paradise Kiss by Ai Yazawa

Doubt by Yoshiki Tonogai

Locke & Key by Joe Hill

Calvin & Hobbes by Bill Watterson

Gentleman Bastards by Scott Lynch (waiting)

The Singing Hills Cycle by Nghi Vo (waiting)

Iron Widow by Ziran Jay Zhao (waiting)

In progress:

Nightrunner by Lynn Flewelling

Sevenwaters by Juliet Marillier

Discworld by Terry Pratchett

The Chronicles of Tornor by Elizabeth A. Lynn

Earthsea Cycle by Ursula K. Le Guin

Hainish Cycle by Ursula K. Le Guin

The Broken Earth by N.K. Jemisin

Graceling Realm by Kristin Cashore

Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper

The Radiant Emperor by Shelley Parker-Chan

The Lymond Chronicles by Dorothy Dunnet

Alexander the Great by Mary Renault

Hercule Poirot by Agatha Christie

Miss Marple by Agatha Christie

Malazan Book of the Fallen by Steven Erikson

Chocolat by Joanne Harris

Chrestomanci by Diana Wynne Jones

Riverside by Ellen Kushner

The Green Bone Saga by Fonda Lee

Montague Siblings by Mackenzi Lee

Ripley by Patricia Highsmith

Riddle-Master by Patricia A. McKillip

The Winnowing Flame by Jen Williams

Enchanted Forest Chronicles by Patricia C. Wrede

Tensorate by Neon Yang

Yotsuba&! by Kiyohiko Azuma

The Case Study of Vanitas by Jun Mochizuki

DNF:

The Cemeteries of Amalo by Katherine Addison

Eagle and Jaguar by Isabel Allende

The Memoirs of Lady Trent by Marie Brennan

The Books of Babel by Josiah Bancroft

Monk & Robot by Becky Chambers

The Maze Runner by James Dashner

Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle

The Sandman by Neil Gaiman

Rizzoli & Isles by Tess Gerritsen

Fairy Oak by Elisabetta Gnone

New Hercule Poirot Mysteries by Sophie Hannah

Rebel Belle by Rachel Hawkins

The Brown Sisters by Talia Hibbert

The Queen of the Tearling by Erika Johansen

The Dark Tower by Stephen King

Skulduggery Pleasant by Derek Landy

The Broken Empire by Mark Lawrence

Book of the Ancestor by Mark Lawrence

Kenzie & Gennaro by Denis Lehane

Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis

Wayward Children by Seanan McGuire

Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery

Binti by Nnedi Okorafor

Miss Peregrine’s Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan

Divergent by Veronica Roth

The Kingkiller Chronicles by Patrick Rothfuss

Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson

The Witcher by Andrzej Sapkowski

London Highwaymen by Cat Sebastian

A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket

The Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater

The Riyria Revelations by Michael J. Sullivan

The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker

The Lion Hunters by Elizabeth Wein

The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells

The Walking Dead by Robert Kirkman

Monster by Marjorie Liu

Fables by Bill Willingham

The Promised Neverland by Kaiu Shirai

[deathnote-dramanmusical]

Death Note the Musical UK

Live at the Lyric Theatre

Rem- Aimie Atkinson

Ryuk- George Maguire

Light- Joaquin Pedro Valdes

L- Cal Man

Misa- Jessica Lee

Sayu- Rachel Clare Chan

Soichiro- Christian Marbella

[normalaboutdntm]

Signed programme from the London concert of Death Note the Musical ^.^ It reads right-to-left so this is the front cover!

[ID: a black programme which reads Death Note the Musical In Concert above the show's logo of an apple resting on an open Death Note. Ryuk's silhouette can be seen in a reflection on the apple and while the writing in the notebook isn't fully legible, one can tell it's the rules of using the Death Note. At the very bottom in small text it says copyright Tsugumi Ohba, Takeshi Obata Shueisha, Horipro. There are five autographs in golden sharpie. End ID]

They started selling autographed programmes on Saturday at the Lyric for not much more than the non-signed ones. I can't read the handwriting very well but I'm pretty sure they're signed by Light/Joaquin Pedro Valdes, Rem/Aimee Atkinson, Ryuk/George Maguire, and Misa/Jessica Lee. This particular programme is also signed by Sayu/Rachel Clare Chan, as I met her at stage door and she happened to have a pen. :) I really wish I'd thought to bring one so I could have gotten L/Dean John Wilson's autograph as well (I'm not sure why he didn't sign the programmes - maybe because Carl Mann also performed the role?) but you can't win them all I guess.

More described images of the programme and commentary below the cut. I am only including the "articles" so to speak and excluding the actor bios/ad pages because I don't have it in me to type up every bit of information in here. If you would like to see the extra pages and are willing to write image descriptions, DM me.

[ID: a text box that says "Welcome to Death Note: the Musical at the London Palladium! Tonight, we invite you to immerse yourself in the gripping world of Death Note, a story that has captivated hearts globally. With mesmerizing music, stunning performances and thought-provoking themes, our talented cast and creative team will lead you through a thrilling journey of morality, power and justice.

"As we make history at the iconic London Palladium with what will be the first ever English language performance of Death Note, we thank you for joining us on this unforgettable adventure.

"Prepare to be spellbound as the curtain rises, the music swells and Death Note unfolds before your eyes. . .

"Enjoy the show!

"Carter Dixon McGill Productions"

After the text box is a rehearsal picture. Light sings wearing a backpack and two femme actors who are also singing stand in profile next to him, holding books and wearing backpacks as well. Someone stands behind JPV almost completely blocked by him. End ID]

Two things to note here: the use of the manga font and the welcome message that specifies the Palladium. The rest of the programme mentions both the Lyric and the Palladium, so I'm not sure if the absence of the Lyric here is a mistake or if they wanted to preserve the original intent of the message, which is that the first performances at the Palladium were a really big deal.

[ID: A rehearsal pic of Light holding up the Death Note while L, Ryuk, and other cast members look on. A text box says " A message from Horipro, the original producers of Death Note: The Musical.

"The project to adapt the internationally acclaimed manga Death Note, published by Shueisha and created by Tsugumi Ohba (original story) and Takeshi Obata (illustrations), into a musical, began in 2011. Composed by Frank Wildhorn, who has collaborated with our company on numerous productions since Jekyll & Hyde in Tokyo in 2001, and directed by the renowned Japanese director Tamiya Kuriyama, Death Note: The Musical had its world premiere in Tokyo in 2015. Since then, it has garnered passionate, enthusiastic fans and has been performed multiple times in Japan and South Korea.

"Currently, HoriPro is presenting Harry Potter and the Cursed Child and School of Rock in Tokyo. Over the years we have had the pleasure of bringing numerous wonderful works born in London, such as Mary Poppins, Matilda and Billy Elliot, to Japan. It brings us immeasurable joy to now introduce a production originating from Japan to audiences in London.

"To everyone witnessing the start of Death Note: The musical as it ventures into the world, we express our heartfelt gratitude.

"We hope you enjoy the show!

"Yoshitaka Hori, HoriPro Group Chairman, President & CEO" End ID]

[ID: the panel from the manga of Light's heart attack. Text box that says, "Death Note Between Entertainment and Culture by Filippo Cervelli

"When Death Note originally appeared as a manga in 2003, it took its audience by surprise. The story of the genius high-school student Light Yagami chancing upon the magic titular Death Note, giving him the power to kill everyone on the planet just by writing their name on its pages, was a compelling tale interweaving magic with the urban Tokyo everyday environment. Dissatisfied with the judicial system, Light takes the matters of justice into his own hands, placing himself above the law and embarking on a journey to purge the world of evildoers. From this enticing premise Death Note then evolves into a psychological thriller, epitomised by Light's cat-and-mouse battle with his main antagonist, the brilliant and mysterious detective L. The numerous panels alternating the two characters playing mind games against each other, brilliantly written by Tsugumi Ohba and vividly drawn by artist Takeshi Obata, have left a long-lasting impression on the manga's readers. And yet, together with the compelling drama and carefully crafted dialogues, Death Note also struck a powerful chord in its audience, because no reader could remain insensitive to the simple yet fundamental question it asked: "What would you do if you had the power to change the world?" end ID]

[ID: the manga panel where Soichiro has just fired an empty gun at Light in the car and Misa and Light both look terrified but relieved. There are two pull-out quotes that say "Death Note has sold more than 30 million copies worldwide, making it one of the bestselling manga of all time" and "Death Note has successfully shown that manga aimed at 'kids' can treat very serious matters, too." The rest of the article reads: "Not only was Death Note a successful story, the context of its publication was conducive to its great impact. Japan's comics industry is heavily focused on serialisations in dedicated magazines, of which there exist a plethora, divided by frequency of publication (weekly, biweekly, monthly, etc.) and genre. Death Note was in fact published in weekly instalments in Shonen Jump, Japan's most popular and iconic manga magazine which, in its 55 years of history, has published global hits such as Jojo's Bizarre Adventures (1987-2004), Dragonball (1984-1995) and the more recent Demon Slayer (2016-2020) and One Piece (1997-). While the popularity of Shonen Jump contributed to the visibility of Death Note, it also placed the story in an unusual context. As the above examples show, Shonen Jump is famous for action, comedy and sports manga catered to an audience of mainly adolescent boys. Although the categorisation does not of course preclude readers outside of this demographic, Japanese magazines do take their target audiences into serious consideration when choosing their contents. It was therefore striking that a manga not based on humour, romance or battles, which focused instead on murder and psychological thrills, could find a space among the pages of Jump. However, this supposed misplacement worked in the manga's favour, inducing in readers a sense of wonder and curiosity towards a new publication that seemed so different from its neighbours. In the end, with a serialised run of three years (2003-2006), later collected in twelve volumes (plus one with extra contents), Death Note has sold more than 30 million copies worldwide, making it one of the bestselling manga of all time. It has successfully shown that manga aimed at 'kids' can treat very serious matters, too.

"Beyond the numbers, Death Note has left an indelible mark on contemporary Japanese culture. Its great success solidified the reputation of Oba and Obata as one of manga's most appreciated duos, who later produced other hits such as Bakuman (2008-2012), which takes an insider's look into the world of manga publiishing in Japan, and Platinum End (2015-2021), a fantasy manga following the stories a group of contenders who are granted angelic powers in a race to become the next God. Death Note proposes a protagonist who chooses to fight for his values in a society that does not seem to give any solid models of prosperity and fails to ensure individual happiness. While Light's motives might be despicable, his actions ask fundamental questions about right and wrong and about what justice really means, which may not find immediate answers. This is possibly Death Note's deepest strength.

"All these factors have assured Death Note's success. While the original manga is read avidly around the world even today, 20 years after its original serialisation began, the story has also been expanded and adapted into various media. Together with the animated series following the original story, a live-action film version was released shortly after the manga's conclusion in 2006. Split into two parts, the films starred internationally renowned Tatsuya (Battle Royale) and Ken'ichi Matsuyama (Norwegian Wood, Gantz) as Light and L, respectively. The films, featuring a different ending from the manga version, enjoyed such popularity that they spawned a spin-off film in 2008, L Change the WorLd, focusing on the titular awkward and brilliant detective. In 2016, another spin-off film was released. Titled Death Note: Light Up the New World and set ten years after the confrontation between Light and L, it imagines a new case in which six new death notes have appeared. Filmic adaptations have also crossed Japanese borders, with a US-produced film released by Netflix in 2017. The film transposes the story to an American high school setting, changing characters' names accordingly. The TV format has also proved particularly fruitful for Death Note, with the story adapted into a series of 11 episodes in 2015, featuring in the role of L Kento Yamazaki, known to Western audiences as the lead in the Netflix show Alice in Borderland.

"With countless adaptations to other media, including novels, videogames and trading card games, Death Note's cultural impact is still strong. Together with reading the original manga and watching the various cinematic versions, London audiences now have the possibility to enjoy the musical adaptation of the manga series, adding another precious layer to the multimedia experience of this staple of contemporary Japanese creativity.

"Filippo Cervelli is a Lecturer in Modern and Contemporary Japanese Literature at SOAS University of London." End ID]

This is all I can manage tonight. . . I'll be back with more later.

[meandmypagancrew]

If Comet really does go to the West End next year, I need Mia Kobayashi and Rachel Clare Chan to play Natasha and Sonya more than I need to breathe tbh

[abnerkrill]

And with my last film watched, it’s Venice roundup time babey! may contain mild spoilers but I keep it vague. from worst to best! featuring a somewhat arbitrary rating scale because the big screen festival ambience obliterates my objectivity.

[please note that I did not attend blonde, the son, or white noise so I have no opinions on those.]

I give 1.5 stars to CHIARA, an Italian biopic about St. Clare of Assisi. There are fragments of a great film in here and some surprisingly hella cool musical sequences, but also some laughably bad shots and cringe-fail dialog. I mostly felt disrespected by its approach to history: why oh why are we turning 13th century saints into girlbosses?

I give 2 stars to the short HOUSE COMES WITH A BIRD, which is oh so beautiful but extremely dumb. Feels like an advertisement—and that’s because it is! Made for Miu Miu. I am begging Pedro Pascal to let me choose his projects for him from now on.

I give 2.25 stars to DON’T WORRY DARLING. Florence Pugh, Chris Pine, Gemma Chan, Kiki Layne, costumes, production, cinematography, and score are top-notch. However, Pine, Chan, and Layne are hilariously underutilized. The script sucks ass and the sci-fi twist is so riddled with plot holes it instantly sinks. And Harry Styles is bad in this, folks. Get that man an acting coach—or far away from film sets.

I give 2.5 stars to MONICA, a family drama about a trans woman who returns home to care for her ailing mother. Gorgeously shot with a star turn from Trace Lysette, but frustratingly empty, slow, and ultimately somewhat hollow.

I give 2.85 stars to POUR LA FRANCE, a family drama about immigrant identity, patriotism, and regret. The weakest of the “Sad French films about brotherhood” trilogy from Venice (also including ATHENA and LES MIENS.) Felt like it could’ve used some restraint and cutting—it lags and continues where it ought to pull back and stop.

I give 3 stars to LETTER TO MY MOTHER FOR MY SON, another short I thought was touching but leans too advertisement-esque at times. If Miu Miu et al insist on funding films (good) they could at least refrain from having all their films double as branding exercises (bad.)

I give 3.5 stars to DEAD FOR A DOLLAR, a fun Western that literally made me go 🤔 in the theater when Rachel Brosnahan’s character refers to a Black man as a “man of color.” Like, what? This isn’t the 21st century, babes. Waltz and Dafoe seem a little confounded at times, torn between playing this as a Fun Cowboy Yarn or a Serious Morality Tale. Also, the color grading is way too fucking orange. Take it easy on the Instagram filters, I am begging you.

I give 3.75 stars to KHERS NIST (NO BEARS), a relatively short and sweet punch in the face about the hubris of filmmaking. It does what it does very well, but I couldn’t help but feel like its own layers of artifice hinder it from full effectiveness.

I give 3.85 stars to THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN, which maybe deserves a higher objective score but which I simply do not vibe with. I just wanted to shake the characters and tell them to get over themselves :( It’s such a beautiful film though, and these actors do not miss. I’m in love with Kerry Condon and Barry Keoghan. Also, slight criticism over the shooting of the violin playing: Gleeson clearly can play, but not all the shots line up, which is just such an easy fix and so frustrating to musicians in the audience.

I give 3.9 stars to BARDO, FALSE CHRONICLE OF A HANDFUL OF TRUTHS, the tantalizingly divisive surrealist film from Iñárritu that will spark delicious Film Twitter Discourse for months to come. There are episodes in this long, winding tale that made me weep, and there are some that made me cringe in horror, and some that made me go :o dang I didn’t know he was allowed to go there. The long-awaited final scenes of this 3-hour film reward your patience, if you allow it to unfold in its own time. An epic, and a weird one. If you can stomach it, it will amaze.

I give 4 stars to TÁR, thee Cate Blanchett film that will surely get her an Oscar nom. Someone on Twitter called it “more of a full-body possession than a performance” and honestly that description kinda slaps so I’ll repeat it here. I’m really glad this film pulls no punches but I also cringe to think about the ways it’ll be misinterpreted. My complaints are limited to how Lydia Tár acts as a symphony orchestra conductor, with so many dick moves that surely the orchestra members would’ve revolted by now. Final note: I’m so glad we have representation for women who are shitty husbands :’)

I give 4.1 stars to L’IMMENSITÁ, a film that ostensibly stars Penélope Cruz but is actually about her trans son Andrew played so, so well by Luana Giuliani. The bittersweet coming-of-age scenes strike true and the musical sequences are transcendent. Prepare the tissues.

I give 4.1 stars to LES MIENS (OUR TIES), the next-best sad French film about brotherhood. This is a stellar family drama, at times hopeful and gently tragic, but always tender. Wonderful film—could’ve easily turned tacky and overly sentimental, but balances it all well.

I give 4.2 stars to THE WHALE, the film I thought I’d hate but reluctantly love! The fatsuit is problematic and there are indeed elements of framing his eating disorder as something horrific or grotesque, but overall the film treats Charlie (Fraser) with compassion and dignity, and he’s a well-written, fully-realized character. The real standouts are Sadie Sink as his daughter and Hong Chau as his friend and caregiver. They are both so incredibly good that I already weep at the fact that they can’t both win best supporting actress at every awards show ever. Also deals with religious trauma surprisingly well—a huge surprise considering I usually dislike Aronofsky.

I give 4.3 stars to BLUE JEAN, which I thought was another short with the Miu Miu project until it actually played and it’s a full-on feature 😭 This is the lesbian movie I really wish I’d had earlier in my personal journey. It’s open and raw, but insists on compassion when considering the perceived failures of closeted or non-activist queer people in the 80s. This film was made by queer women and it shows. Watch it!

I give 4.3 stars to MASTER GARDENER, an imperfect film I will gleefully defend. Hit me up if you hate it—most people do! I repeat as always that Paul Schrader is really just making different versions of the same film over and over again, so if you don’t like Schrader you won’t like this, but if you do like Schrader you’ll like this. Thorny, stilted, gloriously particular, this is Paul Schrader at peak Paul Schrader. I have never been so in love with Joel Edgerton, and Quintessa Swindell is my personal breakout star of Venice.

I give 4.4 stars to SAINT OMER, the French feminist take on Medea that I loved so very much. You can tell that director Alice Diop is a documentary filmmaker because it often feels documentary-like, which is absolutely a strength here. Quiet and gripping, a must-see for the classics intertextuality girlies.

I give 4.5 stars to BONES AND ALL. I love this film to bits and I sense it will affect my thinking and my storytelling impulses for a long, long time. A road trip, a coming-of-age film, a gory cannibalism film, an indictment, a poem, a love letter. Might have turned me into a real Timothee Chalamet fan when I was always somewhat neutral about him before. Taylor Russell is magnificent. This films says to love and be loved is to feed and be fed, and IT’S RIGHT.

Finally, I give a whopping 5 stars to ATHENA, which someone on Twitter called “Mad Max on the streets of Paris,” if that gives you a sense of the vibe. This is the film of the fucking year and believe you me they’re going to name some other film Best Picture at the awards shows but they will be wrong, I say. THEY WILL ALL BE WRONG. I am begging you to watch it on the biggest screen possible; it also releases on Netflix later this year. Breathtakingly original, vibrant, dynamic, violent filmmaking at its finest. We will all soon be in love with Sami Slimane’s Karim—especially Enjolras girls, calling it now. It’s the revolutionary leader vibes which honestly is all I ever wanted. It’s the love and tragedy and grief and brotherhood of it all. In conclusion:

Thanks for coming to my Ted talk, now go set an alert for ATHENA’s release date and do come bother me with ultra-specific questions about any and all films.

[wlwbookshelf]

PRIDE MONTH: READER’S CHOICE BOOKS Thanks to everyone for sharing their favourites! The books our readers wanted everyone to know about are (listed alphabetically by author family name, and grouped by row):

Disobedience by Naomi Alderman

I Kissed a Girl by Jennet Alexander

Written in the Stars by Alexandria Bellefleur

Scatter by Molly J. Bragg

Compass Rose by Anna Burke

Afterlove by Tanya Byrne

Plain Bad Heroines by Emily M. Danforth

This Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone

Annie on My Mind by Nancy Garden

The Dead and the Dark by Courtney Gould

The Private Life of Jane Maxwell by Jenn Gott

The Once and Future Witches by Alix E. Harrow

Her Royal Highness by Rachel Hawkins

Delilah Green Doesn't Care by Ashley Herring Blake

That Inevitable Victorian Thing by E.K. Johnston

We Are Okay by Nina LaCour

Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo

Before You Say I Do by Clare Lydon

One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston

Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir

Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan

She Who Became The Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan

The Verifiers by Jane Pek

Wilder Girls by Rory Power

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Honey Girl by Morgan Rogers

The Midnight Lie by Marie Rutkoski

On Sundays, She Picked Flowers by Yah-Yah Scholfield

The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon

The Jasmine Throne by Tasha Suri

Malice by Heather Walter

The Rise of Kyoshi by F.C. Yee

Our readers also nominated fav comics and fav fan fic if you wanted to check those out!