#bridesmaid horror stories

[selfproclaimedloveologist]

Weddings were supposed to be days of happiness, spent savoring the special day you bound yourself to your partner. This wedding, however, was devoid of joy.

You had heard rumours about the infamous Mydeimos, and had sighed as you learned of each new territory he conjured and people he'd slain. You parents must have known of you horror just from hearing stories about the prince. But alas, you were set to marry him. Today.

You sat in front of a vanity, admiring yourself. You had on a long white dress that flowed like water, along with precious jewels such as rubies and sapphires coating your neck and hands with a gold band. As you stared at your reflection, your eyes showed no joy like stories had told of brides. In fact, there was a ferocious ache and emptiness inside, gnawing at you. You had dreaded this day the moment it was marked. There was something so surreal about marrying someone you didn't know.

Being abruptly snapped out of your mind when a bridesmaid entered your room, and grabbed you by the arm, forcing you to trail after her.

The ceremony was nothing exciting. Truly, it was mediocre. The sky shone a light blue, the bells rang out, you gave a loveless kiss to Mydei. Nothing exciting.

Now you sat on Mydeis bed. His room was rather large, though it was filled mainly with air. Besides a bookshelf and a bed far to large for anyone, the room was vacant, like a ghost was inhabiting it.

You sat on the large bed, spreading your entire body out to make yourself comfortable. You had put on a white skimpy nightgown since it was comfortable enough and your parents hadn't packed anything else since they thought they were getting grandkids, and didn't deem anything more substantial necessary for the night. The silky bedsheets underneath you felt like they were wrapping around your body, making you feel at ease. That comfort was cut short though.

"Well if your going to take up the whole bed, I'll just sleep in the servants chamber." You instantly recognized the voice. Leaning against the doorway of the room was Mydei, small droplets of water fell down his chin and his hair dropped over his face a little. Along with that he paraded nothing but a towel on, letting his bare torso be completely exposed.

"You took a shower?" You question, completely ignoring his earlier remark. Your eyes quickly fell onto his torso, admiring how toned and in shape he was.

"Of course I did. It was hot as hell outside and the wedding was hours." He stated, making his way to the bed. He took long confident strides before hovering over the bed, looking at you, as if for permission to lay. After you give him a nod, he sits down, the bed curving around his body as he sat down.

Now the bed felt so very small. Before it had felt like an entire island, but now with Mydei here, it feels like its just the two of you.

"You know, most people on their weddings nights..." You begin, before being quickly interrupted.

"Have sex?" Mydei supplied bluntly. He now lowered all his weight onto the bed. Now you could really see his body. Despite having a towel on, he still looked hot as fuck. Your eyes once again fell onto his abs, admiring them momentarily, before his voice snapped you out of a trance. "Did your parents tell you that you married me because I wanted you?"

You were taken aback. You never really knew why you were married off, and you never bothered to inquire about it, because you knew they wouldn't have given an answer. But Mydei, wanting you so bad he married you? Was this some sort of cruel joke?

"You.. Wanted me?" The words come out hesitantly, as if your scared to speak in front of your husband.

"Of course I did. Have you seen yourself? I might be known as cold hearted, but that doesn't mean I don't desire." He then abruptly moved to hover over your body, pinning your wrists above you on the bed as he placed his legs around yours, as if trapping your legs between his.

You were yet again, taken aback by this revolution. With him hovering over you, and positioning you like this, you felt as if you were going to burst of lust.

He then moved his face closer to the shell of your ear, whispering lowly, "anyways, your my wife now. And my wife deserved whatever she desires. Including pleasure."

And then you felt soft kisses trail up your neck. His kisses were surprisingly light and airy. He moved one of his hands to your waist, using the other one to still keep your hands pinned. His hands were noticeably bigger then your own.

As he touched you and kisses you, you couldn't stutter a word. You were so lost in everything. In the marriage. Your parents. And most of all, his touch. It was as if his touch was a sedative that completely numbed you as he began to trail kisses up your jawline, until reaching your lips.

His breath was hot and smelled nice against your lips. He slowly used his hand to circle small calming circles on your back, making you feel awfully relaxed at the motion.

His lips finally met your own, he sucked on your bottom lip first, and then gave you light kisses before opening his mouth, while you did the same, allowing him entry into you. His kiss was now filled with desire, like it was pent up rage brimming to get out. He kissed aggressively, making your mouth his toy.

What a wonderful wedding night.

[tipofthemountain]

actress

tags: biker!Simon “Ghost” Riley x actresses!Afab Reader, Fluff, Established relationship, reader is a famous actress. Mentions of sex and sexual acts but no action is taken. Minors should still take extreme caution reading!

word count: 1.5k

summary: Reader is on set of her newest movie and Simon comes to visit!

a/n: First story I’m posting! I’m a little nervous for what everyone will think but I hope you enjoy it!

ps. biker!Simon is my current hyper fixation so bare with me if there’s like a million more biker au stories :}.

edit: adding this in but my requests are open!

༺𖤓༻༺𖤓༻༺𖤓༻༺𖤓༻༺𖤓༻ ༺𖤓༻

It was a warm Tuesday inside studio lot B. A beautiful facade of a two story house stands in a field of white daisies. You almost couldn’t believe your eyes when you walked onto the set. It looked so real! An exact replica of the real house you’ll be shooting on in a week.

The role you are playing is that of a farm wife with her three children, except your husband is having an affair with the barns keeper and your sleeping with the maid. Neither of you know you’re both cheating of course but the children do. The entire plot of the movie is the children trying to get the parents to find out about the double affairs. It’s a LGBTQ+ romance set in the early 1950s. It’s filled with steamy sex scenes and overly dramatic fights.

It’s the exact kind of movie you love doing. Sappy period pieces. In fact the movie that put you in the spotlight was almost exactly like this except it was the 1860s and you where a young unmarried queen with a “live in maid”.

Your boyfriend of 5 years Simon, or as his biker group likes to call him “Ghost” for the skull bandanna he likes to wear around his face, dropped you off on set on his newly refurbished 1980s Harley Davidson. You swore sometimes you thought he was more in love with that bike than he was with you.

“Make some money baby.” Simon told you after a steamy kiss early this morning.

Simons always been supportive of your career. The two of you met on the set of a Tv show when he was hired as a last minute extra for for some bike scene you can barely remember. For Simon it was love at first sight, but for you it was ‘I’ll wait and see where this goes’. Spoiler: You fell in love and are engaged, set to be married later this year.

“Where is my Anna Marie?” You hear your director yell out as you sit in your makeup chair getting touches done to your character’s signature red lip.

“Over here Clark! I needed my lips retouched. I think Amy got a little excited!” Clark Russel. You’ve worked with him a few times now and he’s always been a joy and a pleasure to work with, not something you find comes easy in this industry.

“Your needed on set in five. We’ve got to have this last shot of you and Blanche in the kitchen. We’ve got one week of shooting left here in the studio before we all go out on location.” Clark quickly spills out with you barely catching any of it.

Blanche is played by your costar Amy Heart. A talented actress 3 young years older than you. You’ve done several movies with her by now. You consider her one to your best friends and even plan to ask her to be a bridesmaid.

“James, Finn and Blanche are all on set. We just need you.” Clark makes direct eye contact with you as your makeup artist finishes the last touches on your makeup. He always insisted on calling people by their character names and you never questioned it.

James is played by Arther Godwin. The man that’s supposed to be your characters husband. You’ve never met him before this project but a quick IMDB search led you down a rabbit hole of bad low budget horror movies that you and Simon later binged watched. Finn is played by Roderick Grant, a fresh face. This would be his breakout role after a stream of hit indie movies.

“All done.” Your makeup artist releases you and you stand up from your seat grabbing the jacket that goes with your costume. You throw the jacket on around your shoulders and loop your arm in Clarks.

“Let’s get this show on the road!” You say in an over dramatic southern accent to which your director roles his eyes at.

༺𖤓༻

After 3 more hours of grueling take after take of Clark just having to get the tear sliding down your cheek just right, to which you where ready to rip his head off. Your just about to pass out on your trailer couch in nothing but a robe and very thin 1950s appropriate lingerie, when you hear 3 gentle knocks on your door. You get up with a puff of air leaving your lips putting your hands in your hair.

“Who is it!” You yell not really wanting to get up to answer the door.

“Open the door and find out!” You hear that oh so familiar thick Manchester voice behind the thinness of your trailers door.

In no time you’re rushing to the door and pulling your bulky fiancé in to your trailer and lacing your red lips with his. Simon closes the door through your sloppily sweet kisses. He smells of expensive leather and gas but you still drink all of him in.

“You miss me tha’ much?” Simons thick accent lets out through a smirk.

“Always.” You smile up at the tall man resting your chin on his chest.

“How was today? Make anyone else cry today?” Simon jokes but you take serious offense.

“That was one time and I didn’t even mean to yell at the poor guy.” You slap his shoulder as you both take a seat next in the oh so comfy couch in your trailer.

“I was only joking love.” Simon laughs and places a gentle kiss to your temple. He has one hand around your shoulder and the other rubbing up and down your thigh softly. You with one of your hands on his much bigger thigh and the other holding the hand that’s around your shoulder.

“Long day. Completely closed set. Only Clark and the main cast where set to shoot today.” Closed sets are usually indicators that you where filming your sex scenes today. You had one with your on screen husband and one with Amy. You almost never liked doing sex scene with men. It was never because Simon didn’t want you to or that you ever hated your male costar. You had this respect for Simon and you felt like the sex scenes could get too real sometimes. Personally, you never wanted for Simon to watch a scene of you sharing a bed(or even sometimes a kitchen counter) with another man. But every time you would ask Simon he would always just say some form of ‘This is all make believe. It isn’t real. I know you love me and some fake sex scene isn’t going to change that.” You still sometimes denied it though.

“When are you off?” Simon ask softly moving his hand further up your thigh.

You knew the game he was playing, he always did this when visiting. He always got you worked up and sweating before you had to go back and shoot a scene.

“30 minutes my love. We have to finalize a few things for today, but nice try honey.” You push Simons hand down slightly and look up towards him. Of course he has the cheekiest smirk on his face.

“I miss you at home.” Simon says kissing down your neck this time and creeping his hand back up your thigh.

“Simon.” You whisper scold him as he makes his way onto your shoulder planting sweet kisses.

“I miss the way you smell…” He grabs your hips and lays your back flat against the couch hovering over you as he plants kisses down over your collar bone. You inhale sharply when he moves his hand under the thin bra provided by the costume department.

“I miss the way you feel…” He moved his other hand to finish untying to robe from around your waist. He slowing starts kissing his way down your stomach stopping at the hem of the very 1950s lingerie.

“And I certainly miss the way you taste.” Simon has a giant smile planted on his face when he plants open mouth kisses down your thigh.

And just when he’s about to touch your center 3 harsh knocks are placed on your door.

“Miss, Mr. Russel said he needs you.” The voice calls out not even waiting for you to respond.

Simon lets out a laugh and you sit up and push him lightly.

“That’s not funny!” You whisper yell at him only to make him laugh even more. You stand up and tie your robe back around your waist and walk to the trailer door.

“It’s a little funny.” Simon says watching you with a panicked look on your face.

“I’ll be back in 20 minutes. I love you.” You place a gentle kiss on Simons lips and him returning the kiss.

“I love you too.” He says back placing one final kiss to your forehead.

Before you leave however you whisper into his ear “I think you owe the costume designer.” and bite the end of his ear playfully.

Simon watches you with his his cheek drawn inside his mouth as you grab the door handle of your trailer and leave him alone with his nothing but his thoughts for the next 20 minutes.

༺𖤓༻༺𖤓༻༺𖤓༻༺𖤓༻༺𖤓༻ ༺𖤓༻

final thoughts: i definitely got carried away while writing. I tend to do that. I get caught up on details that most likely don’t even matter all that much. I feel like somethings definitely could have been left out and more things added in but in the end it’s just a story and if you don’t like the first few sentences, just skip the story and move on.

@gauloiseblue for you friend <3

[knightyoomyoui]

Dahyun x M/F Reader - "Die With A Smile"

NOTE: This story is inspired from the recently released song a week ago featuring a collab between two of tgreatest artists ever, Bruno Mars and Lady Gaga titled "Die With A Smile", just like the name of this story. Everything also that you're about to read are loosely based from one of the horror films I've watched and I thought about it as another fitting music video for this song if it features a storyline. So yeah, try to listen along while you imagine the story inside your head.

WARNING: Contains violence, expect gore and blood. 

(Ooh, ooh)

I, I just woke up from a dream Where you and I had to say goodbye And I don't know what it all means But since I survived, I realized

At the beginning of the song, a vivid image of hands separating from each other's grasp amidst the white foggy surrounding can be seen. The girl, revealed to be Dahyun, looks at you regretfully and heartbrokenly. She slowly lowers her hand just as her distance shrank.

You abruptly woke up from your bed, catching your breath. You rubbed your hair and face, groaning in reaction after having your precious sleep disrupted by that nightmare. The acoustic guitar from the intro is accompanied with soft "oohs" from Bruno Mars' sweet adlibs.

The next scene was you being alone in the dressing room, checking yourself out on the mirror with the exquisite tuxedo suit you got after what the tailor had made for the special occasion of your life. While straightening the fabric and the necktie wrapped around you, your face showed discomfort and fear after recalling those bothersome glimpses of the nightmare you had last night.

It was weird. Why did you have this a vision of seeing your woman, Dahyun, letting go and bidding goodbye to you? It's one of the worst things you wouldn't want to happen to you ever, especially since you and her are just about to embark into the next chapter of your love story together today.

You just shook your head to get rid of that ridiculous and unpleasant thought. It is better to remain focused on what's about to come today and only hope for the best, as you and her truly deserve it, just like every other wedding couple should. Calming yourself with a broad grin, you looked at the reflection of yourself in the mirror one more time before walking away.

Wherever you go, that's where I'll follow Nobody's promised tomorrow So I'ma love you every night like it's the last night Like it's the last night

On the pre-chorus, the scene shifts to the wedding currently being processed. The chapel was packed with lots of visitors. The priest was standing in front of the altar along with you, the bridesmaid, and your best man. Everyone present was looking at the door opening, revealing the bright lights from outside behind the figure of your lovely bride, Dahyun, in her breathtaking wedding dress and face covered in a white veil.

The next was you and her standing face-to-face in front of the altar. You kept on watching and listening to Dahyun give her oath for you, made from the words in heaven. Remembering what you just experienced a while ago before the wedding started may have gotten you curious about what it might mean, but you are certain that you'll do whatever it takes to prevent that from happening.

Adding another promise within your heart, mind, and soul, along with the oath you've taken before her, you swore that you'd be there by her side always.

The scene then cuts to the reception, where the visitors are now celebrating you and Dahyun being newlyweds. The married couple talked happily with your parents when suddenly the party was interrupted by a scream from one of the guests.

Your heads are directed to where it came from, and to your shock, one of your family's close-friend who is a veterinarian and an elderly guest of yours has his body now hanging dangerously on the terrace before he completely slips down, sending him down and crashing on the ground, which made everybody yell in surprise.

As the wife of the man who fell from the second floor came in a hurry to check on his condition, the man suddenly rose from the ground and pulled his wife closer. Everybody shouted in horror when the man started to bite his wife on the neck, which caused all of the guests to get back away from the strange couple. The beats of the drum at the end of the pre-chorus coincides with the shot of the man biting the bloody, torn skin and creepily staring at everyone who is looking back at him.

If the world was ending I'd wanna be next to you If the party was over And our time on Earth was through I'd wanna hold you just for a while And die with a smile If the world was ending I'd wanna be next to you

As the chorus began to play, everyone started running for their lives, which caused a stampede, which panickedly made you and Dahyun separate from each other. Both of you scream for each other's names in the middle of the chaos ensuing in the room. You ended up in the kitchen along with your cousin, Dahyun's sister, and the photographer for your wedding. Some of the guests who turned out to be looking infected with rabid behavior were located at the door.

The square glass in the middle of it got shattered, and Mr. and Mrs.'s hands started to sprawl out. You found a vent to hide in and intended to make everybody get in there before the door opened. After successfully entering the vent, you wondered why the photographer hadn't joined yet. Despite your panic, the photographer instead commanded the three of you to keep moving forward, as he confirmed that he couldn't fit inside the vent due to his size and that he'd be the one to block the infected off.

Appreciating his sacrifice, all three heads went on to escape. The three ended up outside and found a police car parked. Your cousin led the inspection, and it turns out there was a deceased policeman inside the driver's seat. While he did a closer look, the policeman suddenly sprung up and bit your cousin on the cheek, leaving you no choice but to cry in pity for your cousin and leave him there as Dahyun's sister forces you to continue escaping.

Through the final lines of the chorus, you and Dahyun's sister came to a halt when you heard Dahyun's voice speak over the speakers. The utmost joy and relief he felt after she ensured that she's currently fine was replaced quickly by surprise when Dahyun additionally announced that she's pregnant and she needs him right now as soon as possible. You proceeded to search for her afterwards.

(Ooh, ooh) Ooh, lost, lost in the words that we scream I don't even wanna do this anymore 'Cause you already know what you mean to me And our love's the only war worth fighting for

In the second verse, the scene then presents Dahyun on the other side of the story, being joined by the priest, her bridesmaid, and one of her closest friends. They hide in a surveillance room. As they discuss their plans, some of the infected guests arrive and see them through the glass panel on the wall.

They hurriedly left the room and were successful, unlike the priest, who had his coat caught by the hands of the infected. He hastily took it off from his body, but the force of the infected pulling the cloth made him slip while attempting to run, resulting in him facing the ground and looking at them frighteningly before he embraced getting eaten out by the infected.

Meanwhile, you arrived at the surveillance room 10 minutes later and discovered the mess that happened in here, and Dahyun is nowhere to be found. Viewing through the monitors, you and Dahyun's sister had a look at what seemed to be a festive and lively celebration transformed into a hellish, gruesome environment. You watched some of the lifeless guests get consumed by the now aggressive infected, and you have no idea how all of this became possible.

Realizing that this must be the dream he had now coming true in real life, you desperately wanted to come and save Dahyun immediately. Back at your wife's situation, Dahyun, her bridesmaid, and her friend stopped through their tracks when they unexpectedly met someone along the way.

Dahyun was distraught, recognizing her mother now being a completely transformed brain-eating cannibal. She stood there frozen, in disbelief at the horrid sight of her mother. It was about to charge at her, but the bridesmaid stepped up to snap Dahyun's senses back, killing the mother with a large branch of a tree.

Dahyun cried and begged for it to stop, but her friend came to comfort her. As the bridesmaid was about to be done, several infected people came towards her, and her distraction caused her to get bitten by them. They ran away, but the infected had their attention stolen when the speakers activated and played a familiar tune. Dahyun's expressed a tearful chuckle hearing their wedding song being played by you back in the room.

Wherever you go, that's where I'll follow Nobody's promised tomorrow So I'ma love you every night like it's the last night Like it's the last night

The second pre-chorus focuses on the scene where Dahyun and her friend locate a storage room in the middle of the woods, where they luckily find a chainsaw and a working TV. They switched it to a channel showing a news report about an ongoing contagious virus spreading through the main cities of South Korea.

Dahyun then learned that the virus was believed to originate from the combined effects of a hazardous chemical and strong signs of leptospirosis in a rat and rabies, which particularly were detected in a cat based on the statements of one of the survivors. Health authorities subsequently received a complaint about a certain veterinary clinic going wild, and the owner is currently being searched.

They found a huge metal lid beside the exterior of the room and opened it just as the infected spotted them on sight. They quickly opened it but had no other time to close it as they became closer. As they reached underground, Dahyun prepared herself by tearing off some of the cloth on the lower portion of her dress to help her move faster.

The drums from the instrumental hit hard and fast, matching the growing intensity as Dahyun and her friends stand on their places while they wait for the infected to descend one by one and launch at them.

If the world was ending I'd wanna be next to you If the party was over And our time on Earth was through I'd wanna hold you just for a while And die with a smile If the world was ending I'd wanna be next to you

The 2nd chorus plays right during Dahyun and her friend's killing spree through the infected, chainsaw slashing every limb, blood splashing everywhere, and an axe buried deep down through the bones.

Unfortunately, her friend got bitten on the shoulder while struggling to finish another one. As they managed to empty the sewer, Dahyun understood his request and was forced to kill him by slicing his head off with a chainsaw.

Meanwhile, you and her sister grabbed some armors and makeshift swords from of the displays inside the manor before sprinting as both explored across the hallways, avoiding the infected chasing you both along the way. Trying to fight them off with whatever foreign object could be seen, Dahyun's sister attempted to lure away some of the infected chasing behind but was overpowered as she got pulled and bitten.

Devastated, you complied with her subtle request to go after your wife. Dahyun saw a ladder through another lid, dropped her chainsaw due to its weight, and climbed it, but noticed that it was locked. She tries to bump it with all the strength she has, but is unsuccessful. Almost losing hope, you suddenly appeared in front of the lid, unknowingly ending up in the same area as her, much to her surprise.

Both of you said each other's names in delight but were cut short when an infected appeared below Dahyun. You quickly found a way to open the padlock just in time for Dahyun to exit and shut the lid to block the infected. 

Right next to you Next to you Right next to you Oh-oh

You and Dahyun exchanged stares and nodded in agreement. You took a few long breaths before removing your body weight to unblock the lid and gripping Dahyun's arm.

The instrumentals played loudly while you and Dahyun made a run for survival out of the estate against the horde of infected chasing your innards. Losing and decreasing some number of them with your defenses, you reached the garden together and continued your moment of rekindling with her, hugging Dahyun tightly.

A time like this will never allow anybody to have their sweetest moment to rest, not until this is all over. Dahyun got alerted at the approaching infected from your back that appeared on the corner of the bushes. She pushed you off and blocked herself with her arm as the infected lunged off for an attack.

She reaches off for your sword and slowly cuts her head off using it. She raises her arm and observed the bite wound she received and instantly demanded you to cut it off right away.

Despite your hesitation and concern, you grabbed your sword and smashed it through her laid arm, causing her to shriek and growl in immense pain.

If the world was ending I'd wanna be next to you If the party was over And our time on Earth was through I'd wanna hold you just for a while And die with a smile If the world was ending I'd wanna be next to you If the world was ending I'd wanna be next to you

At the final chorus, you and Dahyun have reached the front gate and noticed that all the metal bars are barricaded with plastic barriers. Both were fascinated to see that the authorities had quarantined the area.

As you stopped rotating after finding out where you had been led, what you discovered left you frozen in distress.

Dahyun glances at you with her crinkly lips, bleeding nose, pupils and eyes reddening, and teeth becoming grizzly. Based on the obvious signs of her infection, it means that your attempt to prevent the spreading of the virus across her brain has failed.

You lost any care anymore; she remains important to you just as much as the promise you made for her. Carrying Dahyun's weak and collapsing body in your arms, you walk ahead through the exit as personnel in hazmat suits watch the both of you make your way out.

The soldiers began aiming all their heavy guns at your emergence with your dying wife in your arms. Looking at her with pure affection and no disgust or terror, you shed a teardrop for her and kissed her on the lips.

It lasted for seconds until you felt a stinging pain in your mouth. Your eyes widen as Dahyun rips off your tongue. She stands in front of you, now posing in full infected form with amputated arm, yelling uncontrollably at the soldiers while you voicelessly suffer with your damaged mouth.

The soldiers immediately fire their bullets straight at both you and Dahyun. After they all emptied a half of their mags at your helpless carcasses, you and Dahyun crashed on the ground, front and back first, respectively.

Extending their arms one final time to crawl their fingers through the top of their hands and grab them with the last bit of strength left in their body. You and Dahyun held each other for a while until both finally died with a smile from their multiple wounds.

The song is already finished, and an extra clip features your eyes opening and rising from the bed again, cupping your chest and thumping fast. You stared at your hands, letting out a breath of relief, seeing the engagement ring on your finger.

Looking below to your left, Dahyun is still sleeping heavily beside you. You gratefully smiled at the sight of your fiancée being completely fine.

(Ooh, ooh) I'd wanna be next to you

Laying back down on the bed, you positioned yourself sideways to cuddle your soon to be wife in your arms whilst wrapping her delicate hands onto yours and kiss her crown.

You wished and prayed mentally for God's guidance that you can manage to keep her along with your future child safe and secured like this under your protection after the wedding tomorrow and so on.

Whatever scenario it may occur in the future, not even a virus that can cause an outbreak cannot oppose to the unbreakable love between them.

ADDITIONAL NOTE: Yes, it's a sequel to another one-shot featuring Momo from Set 4 titled "The Fight Of Our Lives", it shares the same universe and occurring at the same time as the predecessor. I know you are sharing the same name as your character with Momo, but let's just pretend that you're playing a different one with a same name as you.

[whostheweakersexnow]

Bridesmaid boy

Thirteen-year-old Jake sat on the couch, nervously watching the chaos unfold around him. His older sister, Emily, was supposed to be the bridesmaid at their cousin Sarah’s wedding, but fate had intervened in the most inconvenient way: Emily had come down with the flu.

“Mom, I’m fine,” Emily croaked from her bed, pale and shivering. “I can still go…”

Their mom shook her head. “Absolutely not. You can’t be a bridesmaid when you’re burning up with a fever. You’ll have to stay home and rest.”

That’s when Sarah, the bride, had the brilliant idea. “Jake can do it!”

The room fell silent. Jake’s eyes widened in horror. “What?! No way. I can’t be a bridesmaid.”

Sarah gave him a mischievous grin. “Oh, but you can. The wedding is in an hour, and you’re about the same size as Emily. Besides, it’s just walking down the aisle and standing there. Simple.”

Jake looked at his mom for help, but she was already warming to the idea. “Jake, honey, it’s only for a few hours. Sarah needs you. You wouldn’t want to ruin her big day, would you?”

He wanted to protest, to run, to do anything but what they were asking of him, but Sarah’s pleading eyes and the desperation in the air left him with little choice.

An hour later, Jake found himself in Emily’s room, staring at the white bridesmaid dress hanging from the closet. It was simple but elegant, with a flowing skirt and delicate lace details. His sister, despite her flu-ridden state, was cackling weakly from her bed.

“I can’t believe you’re really doing this,” she rasped, barely able to hold back her laughter. “I wish I could be there to see it.”

“Don’t remind me,” Jake muttered as their mom helped him into the dress. The fabric felt strange, and the unfamiliar sensation of wearing something so delicate and, well, girly made him squirm. To add even more strangeness, they insist that he wear his sister’s frilly underwear and bra that goes with the ensemble.

As if that wasn’t enough, his cousins, all present at the wedding, were already teasing him mercilessly. They’d seen him in the dress just before they left the house and were quick to take pictures. Jake knew they would never let him live this down.

The final blow came when Sarah, with a gleam in her eye, handed him a pair of white heels. “You’ll need these,” she said with a wink.

Jake groaned but slipped them on. To his surprise, he managed to walk in them without too much trouble. His mom fussed over him, fixing his hair and adding a bit of light makeup, much to his chagrin.

Finally, they arrived at the wedding. Jake could feel his face burning with embarrassment as he walked down the aisle, holding a small bouquet of flowers, trying not to trip in the heels. The guests were none the wiser, assuming he was just another bridesmaid. But his cousins—sitting near the front—were another story. They were stifling giggles, snapping pictures with their phones, and giving him thumbs-up as he passed.

The ceremony itself was a blur. Jake stood beside the other bridesmaids, trying to blend in, hoping no one would notice him. But his cousins kept catching his eye, giving him knowing looks. The wedding photographer, oblivious to the situation, took plenty of photos, ensuring that Jake’s moment in the spotlight would be forever immortalized.

After the ceremony, during the reception, his cousins cornered him.

“That was priceless,” his cousin Max said, grinning ear to ear. “You were the prettiest bridesmaid.”

“Definitely the highlight of the wedding,” chimed in his cousin Lucy, holding up her phone to show him the dozens of photos she’d taken. “These are going to make the family group chat very interesting.”

Jake groaned, knowing that he’d never escape the teasing. “Can we not?”

“Oh, we’re never letting you forget this,” Max laughed. “Every family reunion, every holiday, we’ll have these pictures ready to show. And the best part? You looked like you were really into it!”

Jake’s face turned red, but deep down, he knew there was no fighting it. The wedding photos—now filled with memories of his unexpected role as bridesmaid—would be a constant reminder, thanks to his cousins’ relentless teasing.

As the evening wore on, Jake slowly began to relax. The initial embarrassment faded, and he even managed to laugh a little with his cousins. After all, he had done something no one would have expected, and in a weird way, that made the day even more memorable.

But he knew one thing for sure: this was a story his cousins would tell for years to come.

[joeygoeshollywood]

My 25 Favorite Films of 2023

It's that time of year again! Here are my top 25 films of 2023.

25. Joy Ride

Following in the footsteps of Bridesmaids and Girls Trip, Joy Ride offers some of the biggest laughs of 2023 proving once again women can be just as raunchy as men. The cast includes up-and-comers Ashley Park, Oscar nominee Stephanie Hsu, and a scene-stealing breakthrough performance from Sherry Cola. Joy Ride marks a strong debut from writer-director Adele Lim.

24. Theater Camp

Anyone who had aspirations of becoming an actor can relate to Theater Camp, a mockumentary about the staff of a theater camp struggling to keep it afloat. Molly Gordon, Ben Platt, and Noah Galvin lead both behind and in front of the camera in this superb comedy that will leave you singing from the rooftops.

23. A Thousand and One

A Thousand and One is a heartbreaking indie film about a mother's desperate effort to form a bond with her estranged son by kidnapping him from the foster care system following her stint in prison. Teyana Taylor packs an emotional punch with her crushing performance with the help of A.V. Rockwell in her feature debut as a writer-director.

22. Thanksgiving

Eli Roth's filmography in horror is a mixed record, but his latest flick Thanksgiving may be his best work yet. Not only is it a solid slasher with great over-the-top killings, its brilliantly hilarious. In a time where horror franchises can be tiresome, Thanksgiving is one that could call for a second or third helping.

21. Somewhere in Queens

TV icon Ray Romano makes his feature directorial debut in the family comedy Somewhere in Queens. He stars as the father of a promising high school basketball player who goes through perhaps desperate means to assure he lands a college scholarship. Joined by the wonderful Laurie Metcalf, Somewhere in Queens has plenty of laughs as well as plenty of heart.

20. Dream Scenario

The remarkable comeback of Nicolas Cage continues with his brilliant performance in Dream Scenario, a dark fantasy horror comedy in which he plays a college professor who inexplicably starts appearing in everyone's dreams, sparking a national phenomenon that will ultimately take a personal toll. Cage balances the absurdity of the situation his character is in with emotional heft that comes with it. This marks Norwegian filmmaker Kristoffer Borgli's first English-language film and based on how well-executed Dream Scenario is, hopefully it won't be his last.

19. The Covenant

Guy Ritchie's latest The Covenant is a heart-pounding war film based on the true story of Sgt. John Kinley's rescue effort of his Afghan interpreter Ahmed. Jake Gyllenhaal and Dar Salim make a perfect duo in this dramatic, suspenseful film that may be Ritchie's strongest work to date.

18. Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret.

Judy Blume's 1970 adolescent classic Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret. finally made its way to the big screen this year in the heartwarming coming-of-age tale of a girl's awkward journey from childhood to adulthood as well as the complexities that come from being an interfaith household. Abby Ryder Fortson shines as the titular Margaret in an outstanding performance not often seen from child actors. Also, we need more Rachel McAdams.

17. BlackBerry

Arguably the biggest surprise of 2023, BlackBerry offers some of the best laughs in the comedic retelling of the rise and fall of the iconic BlackBerry device. BlackBerry is a showcase of talent of its star Jay Baruchel, Matt Johnson (who also directed and co-wrote the film), and Glenn Howerton of It's Always Sunny fame, easily giving one of the best on-screen performances of the entire year.

16. You Hurt My Feelings

Writer-director Nicole Holofcener reunites with her Enough Said star Julia Louis-Dreyfus with You Hurt My Feelings, which centers a turbulent chapter in a couple's marriage after a novelist overhears her husband mocking her latest book. The dramedy examines the thought-provoking nuances of how fully honest one actually should be with their spouse (the answer may surprise you!). The greatest strength from Holofcener's latest is how its humor comes naturally from the reality of relationships.

15. Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One

Mission: Impossible does the unthinkable in Hollywood: keeping a franchise in top-notch shape. Dead Reckoning Part One, the whopping *seventh* installment of the Ethan Hunt saga, delivers on a compelling plot and incredible action sequences, all of which is cemented by the star power of Tom Cruise, who has carried this spy franchise for nearly 20 years. There have been hints that Dead Reckoning may be the beginning of the end for Mission: Impossible, and if that's the case, it's going out with a bang.

14. Talk to Me

The best horror movie of 2023, Talk to Me is a chilling film about a group of teenager's ill-fated decision of doing a viral challenge of interacting with the dead, only to mistakenly leave the portal open between the living and the spirit world. What makes Talk to Me work is the family drama at the core of the film and the powerful performance from its troubled heroine Sophie Wilde.

13. Sisu

Inglorious Basterds meets Mad Max: Fury Road meets John Wick, Sisu is a WWII-era revenge action flick about a gold prospector's quest to retrieve the gold that was stolen from him from a group of Nazis. Full of brutal, bloody fight sequences with a twisted sense of humor, Sisu is one helluva ride.

12. Creed III

Creed III is a throwback to the era where Hollywood blockbusters were able to provide complete satisfaction. The latest installment of the Rocky spin-off franchise marked the strong directorial debut of its star Michael B. Jordan and also may have sadly marked the final film of the incredibly talented Jonathan Majors, whose recent assault conviction may be a knockout punch to an otherwise booming career.

11. May December

Often having vibes of a soap opera, Todd Haynes' May December is a compelling and at times disturbing film of an actress (played by Natalie Portman) who shadows the woman she's depicting in a film (played by Julianne Moore) famous for her 90s love affair with a then 13-year-old, who later became her husband. Despite the powerhouse performances from the two Oscar winners, the film really belongs to rising star Charles Melton, whose character finally comes to grips with the trauma he unknowingly endured as a child. And Melton's performance is among 2023's best.

10. Anatomy of a Fall

We don't often get great courtroom dramatic thrillers these days which is why Anatomy of a Fall really stands out. German actress Sandra Hüller gives a breakthrough performance as a wife and mother who becomes the prime suspect in what authorities believe is the murder of her husband, who had fallen to his death from the attic window. With plenty of twists and turns, Anatomy of a Fall will keep viewers guessing throughout.

9. Maestro

Not only does Bradley Cooper give the performance of his career, he has also shown his ability to direct is no fluke. Maestro, a biopic that spotlights the personal drama of legendary composer Leonard Bernstein, is a beautifully-shot, well-acted film that solidifies Cooper as one of Hollywood's newest talented filmmakers.

8. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

One would assume that a Spider-Man cartoon would solely be geared towards children but Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is such a sophisticated film between its complex plot and the remarkable animation that are a continuation from its 2018 Into the Spider-Verse predecessor. Between a strong voice cast, an amazing score and a brilliant cliffhanger, Across the Spider-Verse was the shining gem of the many superhero duds 2023 had to offer.

7. Killers of the Flower Moon

At 81-years-old, legendary director Martin Scorsese hasn't lost his step with Killers of the Flower Moon, his best film in at least a decade. The crime drama is based on a true story on the 1920s murders of members of Osage Nation and its ties to the marriage Ernest Burkhart and Mollie Kyle, played by the reliably gifted Leonardo DiCaprio and powerful newcomer Lily Gladstone.

6. Saltburn

Following her strong debut with 2020's Promising Young Woman, filmmaker Emerald Fennell makes a valiant return with her twisted comedic psychological drama Saltburn, which surrounds an Oxford student who is quickly embraced by the wealthy family of a classmate and the jarring fallout as a result. Barry Keoghan (The Banshees of Irisherin, Dunkirk) proves he's more than capable of being the leading man and is joined by rich ensemble including Rosamund Pike, Jacob Elordi, Richard E. Grant and Carey Mulligan. With stunning visuals and some of the most shocking things you'll see onscreen in 2023, Saltburn is a stirring work of art.

5. The Holdovers

It's been a long time since a new Christmas movie can live up to beloved holiday classics and Alexander Payne makes the closest effort with The Holdovers, a 1970-set dramedy about a miserable teacher at a boys academy who is stuck essentially babysitting the "holdover" students who didn't go home for the holidays. Joining the always-brilliant Paul Giamatti is newcomer Dominic Sessa as his troublesome student and Da'Vine Joy Randolph, who gives a powerful Oscar-worthy performance as the cook mourning over the loss of her son. The Holdovers is the perfect film to warm your heart over the holidays this year and every year going forward.

4. Past Lives

Perhaps one of the more unsung heroes of 2023 cinema, Past Lives is a touching story about love and what if. Greta Lee stars in a breakout role as a married woman who rekindles a relationship with a childhood friend from South Korea but rather than going down the typical "will they, won't they" or "love triangle" paths this film easily could've taken, Past Lives delves into the emotional complexities with such tenderness that only writer/director Celine Song could've told (the film is semi-autobiographical).

3. Oppenheimer

If anyone knows how to make a biopic an epic, it's Christopher Nolan. Oppenheimer is essentially two films rolled into one- a tick-tock thriller about the creation of the atomic bomb as well as a political drama that J. Robert Oppenheimer endured. Cillian Murphy gives the performance of his career and leads a gigantic ensemble cast in a film that despite its 3-hour running time goes by fast. And while Barbie may have won the box office battle, Oppenheimer certain won the war in more ways than one.

2. Polite Society

Polite Society is a brilliant action comedy following an aspiring stuntwoman who believes her sister is marrying into a sinister family. In the style of a Tarantino movie, up-and-coming filmmaker Nida Manzoor makes a strong feature debut that is the epitome of a fun popcorn movie, which have been in short supply in recent years.

Poor Things

Yorgos Lanthimos has quickly risen as of the strongest filmmakers of this generation, proving so once again with his latest film Poor Things. Emma Stone gives an Oscar-worthy performance as a woman brought back to life who embarks on a journey of self-discovery and autonomy and is accompanied by an excellent supporting cast. Like a modern-day Tim Burton, Lanthimos was able to create a mesmerizing universe with incredible production design, a whimsical music score, and stunning cinematography. Going to the movies is meant to be an escape, and Poor Things perfectly encapsulates that.

[kookie29]

☆☆~~ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ 6: ᴛʜᴇ ᴡᴇᴅᴅɪɴɢ ~~☆

Synopsis: A short story of Jeremy Gilbert's short-lived but profound romance with the love of his life.

Warning: None

Genre: Fluff/Slight Angst

578 words

Ch1, Ch 2, Ch 3, Ch4 Ch 5, Ch 6, Ch 7, Ch 8

The day of Jeremy and Lena's wedding arrived, bringing a mix of excitement and nerves. Mystic Falls was transformed into a picturesque setting with twinkling fairy lights and beautiful floral arrangements. Friends and family gathered to celebrate the couple's love.

Lena stood in her dressing room, her heart racing with anticipation. She wore a simple, elegant gown, her auburn hair cascading in soft waves. Her bridesmaids, including Jeremy's sister. Elena helped with the final touches, offering words of encouragement and love.

"You look stunning," Elena said, hugging her new sister-in-law. "Jeremy is one lucky guy."

Meanwhile, Jeremy stood with his groomsmen, trying to calm his nerves. His best man, Matt Donovan, clapped him on the back. "Don't worry, man. Everything's going to be perfect."

The ceremony began, and Jeremy watched with bated breath as Lena walked down the aisle. She was radiant, her eyes locked on his. When she finally reached him, they joined hands, feeling the weight of the moment.

The officiant began, "Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to celebrate the union of Jeremy and Lena. Their love has brought them to this moment, and it will carry them through the rest of their lives."

Jeremy and Lena exchanged vows, promising to love and cherish each other through all of life's ups and downs. Tears filled their eyes as they spoke, their voices steady and filled with emotion.

"I, Jeremy, take you, Lena, to be my wife. I promise to stand by your side, to support you, and to love you with all my heart."

"And I, Lena, take you, Jeremy, to be my husband. I promise to be your partner, your confidant, and your biggest supporter. I love you now and always."

As they exchanged rings, a sense of peace and joy settled over them. They were surrounded by the love of their friends and family, and they knew they were ready for whatever the future held.

"You may now kiss the bride," the officiant said with a smile.

Jeremy and Lena shared a tender kiss, sealing their vows and beginning their new life together. The crowd erupted in applause, and they walked down the aisle as husband and wife, ready to face the world together.

However, as they reached the end of the aisle, Lena suddenly stumbled. Jeremy caught her, his heart pounding in his chest. "Lena? Are you okay?"

Lena's face was pale, and her breathing was labored. "Jeremy... I don't feel so good," she whispered, her voice weak.

Panic surged through Jeremy as he called for help. The guests, who had been cheering moments before, now watched in horror as Lena collapsed. The paramedics arrived quickly, but despite their best efforts, Lena's condition worsened.

Jeremy held her hand, tears streaming down his face. "Stay with me, Lena. Please."

Lena looked up at him, her eyes filled with love and sorrow. "I love you, Jeremy," she whispered, her voice barely audible. "Always."

And with that, she took her last breath. Jeremy's world shattered as he held her lifeless body, his heart breaking into a million pieces. The wedding that was supposed to be the happiest day of their lives had turned into a nightmare.

As the paramedics worked to determine what had happened, they discovered a faint trace of a rare poison in Lena's system. The realization hit Jeremy like a truck—Lena hadn't died of natural causes; she had been murdered.

[frazzledsoul]

So Matt Czuchry has been making the promo rounds recently because apparently he's still alive on American Horror Story this most recent season and the season was split in two parts.

Apparently he was on The Talk two days ago and he was accused of ruining the love lives of teenage girls for decades

First of all, I am sick of the knee-jerk misandry that claims that any man Rory Gilmore dates is not good enough for her, because she's such paragon of fidelity, moral character, and good behavior. Has anyone asked if Rory is a good girlfriend and if these guys deserve her? She cheats on or with all of her boyfriends (with Dean and Logan, she's done both), she pits these guys against each other often, she frequently lies and misleads them about her intentions (this goes along with the cheating), she very rarely is repentant about any of this, and she also has the nerve to play the martyr (hello, bridesmaids: hello, being pissed at Jess for not waiting for her in season 3) when her track record does not call for it. I'm not saying she's always awful, but I think the only seasons where she was fair to whoever she was dating were season 1 and season 7. The rest of the time her record....is not good.

Furthermore, Dean and Jess seemed to struggle for a bit after Rory leaves their lives for good and then they get considerably better without her. Dean had at least one kid by 2011, so I'm assuming he was married and settled by then, which is really all he wanted in life (hopefully he got some therapy first). Jess is an author, co-owns a business, and is accepted in a community of his own by 2006 (and is emotionally stable enough not to hold Rory manipulating him into more love triangle bullshit against her). Logan never really gets a break from any of this in the canon we see (and is just as big of a cheater as she is in AYITL) but even he is personally and professionally stable by that era while Rory spends most of AYITL throwing epic tantrums and destroying any professional opportunity she gets.

Why should the boyfriends, who actually exhibited considerable character growth, should be forever declared "toxic" and perpetually morally inferior to Rory when they became more mature (okay, Logan has a mixed record, but Adult Logan works and he gets along with his dad, so we'll take it) and she did not? Why isn't anyone asking if the way Rory treats other people is behavior we want young girls to emulate, instead of only holding the boyfriends to account for what they did wrong?

Yeah, yeah, I know. This is the perils of being a main character written by Amy Sherman Palladinos: you leave her orbit and your life gets better offscreen. But Rory holds a lot of blame for why these relationships didn't work, especially since she keeps doing the same thing over and over. She should be held just as accountable for the things she did wrong as her partners are.

Honestly, Czuchry is being a lot more gracious than the situation calls for here. He showed up to promote his most recent project and a random Tik Tok was waved in his face accusing him of ruining the love lives of young women for years, because of what his character on a TV show did LITERALLY DECADES AGO. Why are y'all mad at him? He didn't write this. He had zero control over any of this. Why is this his fault? This ain't why he's there. Go yell at ASP if you're still mad and leave the actors alone. Credit goes to him for not trying to play Team Logan and be diplomatic because I don't really think he signed up for this discourse here.

This isn't an issue that is isolated to Czuchry: Milo also made the Interwebs mad when he asked to defend Jess's behavior on a talk show a while back (promoting a completely different project) and he pointed that Jess was literally a child when he was a main character on the show with a lot of childhood trauma. But hey, let's get pissed at the actor for pointing out literal facts again.

And Czuchry is right here:all of these characters were flawed, none of them behaved perfectly, and you should not model your real life relationships on any of them. This is not a tale of evil men ganging up on a helpless damsel. There's plenty of bad behavior to go around for all of them.

[superblysubpar]

Hopping in your asks for your movie questions if you wanna share your answers to 1,3&8!

ah yay!! I was hoping some people would ask some movie questions! Thank you so much 💛

what is your favorite film of all time?

This is so tough, and honestly, I think it changes depending on how I'm feeling so I'm going to cheat a little bit and tell you my four favorites on Letterboxd:

Jurassic Park, The Princess Bride, While You Were Sleeping, and The Breakfast Club

(but the Spiderman (all of them but particularly the Spiderverse movies) and Bridesmaids are super super close tied for fifth)

3. favorite film genre?

I think I want to say comedy, just because it's such an over-arching genre that could include romance, I love a good action comedy, there's some great horror that still has comedy elements - like overall, I think you can find it in the most movies, so I think I'd have to say that.

However, I extremely love a good thriller - action blockbuster (think Jurassic Park and Spiderman as stated above or like blockbuster series like Alien, Star Wars, Mission Impossible, Die Hard etc)

whoops I cheated again 😅

8. what’s your comfort film?

I actually just recently discovered that all of my comfort movies start with the letter P, and I want that to be studied, but that's a story for a different day. It really depends on what kind of comfort I'm searching for, but I think I tend to always put on The Parent Trap (the lindsay lohan one, though I do love the original as well).

🤓 ask me a movie question

[angofwords]

rules: list 9 favorite books of 2023 or 9 books on your TBR list for 2024

My nine favorite (first time reads) in no particular order:

She Gets the Girl by Rachael Lippincott and Alyson Derrick: Classic rom-com shenanigans with a pair of delightful characters.

Good Different by Meg Eden Kuyatt: A middle school girl who feels like she doesn't fit in with her friends discovers that she's autistic. This one is written in verse and beautifully expresses a neurodivergent perspective.

Spear by Nicola Griffith: A gorgeous re-imagining of the story of the Lady of the Lake, rich with historical texture.

The Witch's Heart by Genevieve Gornichec: Norse mythology brought stunningly to life in the story of Angrboda, a beautiful witch and the wife of Loki.

The Darkness Outside Us by Eliot Schrefer: Two young men from warring countries set out on a rescue mission to Jupiter's moon Titan, but they must work together when evidence suggests that their mission may be going horribly wrong.

In Memoriam by Alice Winn: A love story set against the horrors of the Great War that explores how war damages and breaks people, but also how love can help them survive.

Odin's Child by Siri Petterson (translated by Siân Mackie and Russell Garrett): The first in a trilogy inspired by Scandinavian folklore about a girl who discovers that she doesn't belong in the world she inhabits.

The Road to Roswell by Connie Willis: A hilarious adventure begins when a reluctant bridesmaid for an alien-themed wedding meets a very real extraterrestrial.

Wrath Goddess Sing by Maya Deane: Building on the story of Achilles dressing as a maiden in Skyros, this book takes it a step further with a transgender Achilles being granted a woman's body by Athena before going to fight at Troy.

While many of these didn't come out in 2023, I read them all for the first time that year. Not all of these were perfect, but they all made me me feel something profound, and I recommend each one wholeheartedly! Thank you to @noburrowingtactics for tagging me!

[tilbageidanmark]

Movies I watched this week (#178):

2 X Wojciech Jerzy Has + 2 X Bruno Schulz:

🍿 Bruno Schulz, "The Polish Kafka", is regarded as 'one of the finest Polish prose stylists of the 20th century'. Before being killed by the Gestapo in 1942, he published only 2 small works. Both were adapted to the cinema later on.

The Hourglass Sanatorium (1973) is a wild surrealist interpretation of Schulz's stories. An acclaimed masterpiece of Borgesian proportions, but where the magical realism is of the Eastern European type, played by poor Shtetl-Jews. A dark, decrepit nightmare, covered with spiderwebs, years before Terry Gilliam ploughed through the same insanities. Schrodinger time-shifts, mysterious doppelgängers, grotesque wax mannequins and lots of sensuality among the ruins. It's a heady, bizarro work of mythological unease. And the final dream scenes connect the story to the holocaust and the annihilation of this world, taking place in graveyards and on the shocking deportation lines. It's Heavy!

🍿 Accordion, Jerzy Has's first short, was how I discovered him. A wordless, bleak fable from 1947, about a son of a poor shoemaker who dreams about buying a used 'Harmonia'.

🍿 Street of Crocodiles on the other hand, the second Bruno Schulz adaptation, was a let down. Dark British stop-animation puppetry, wordless, confusing and in dirty back alleys. An experimental mood piece in a Jan Švankmajer style, but without the charm. M'eh. 1/10.

(Meanwhile I am listening to the music score for Kieślowski's Three Colors: Blue.)

🍿

Six by Sondheim, a 2013 documentary and my introduction to composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim. Absolutely beautiful! (And I loved his Ethel Merman / Loretta Young anecdote...) 8/10.

I have to start searching for his full repertoire. (Or at least I should re-visit 'Marriage Story' one more time...)

🍿

2 by female directors:

🍿 On May 9, 1954, two days before the start of 'La Pointe Courte', her first feature film, Agnès Varda took a photograph of a naked man, a boy named Ulysse and a dead goat on the beach of Calais. (Photo Above). In 1983, she recreated that experience in the documentary Ulysse, an evocative reflection about the time machine of memory, history and art. It’s my 15th Varda film, and was as good as the best of them - 9/10. [*Female Director*].

🍿 Possibly in Michigan (1983) an avant-garde horror musical about cannibalism, a feminist revenge fantasy. Two women shopping for perfume at a department store, are being stalked by a masked serial killer. Artsy and disturbing. A complete review here. [*Female Director*].

🍿

The Browning Version, a British public school drama from 1951. Michael Redgrave gave a tremendous performance as a repressed and meek teacher, isolated and unloved. His contemptuous wife has an affair with a coworker, his nickname by his pupils is 'Himmler of the Fifth Ward', and on his last day of his last term, he's denied his pension. It's a story of failure and heartbreak.

🍿

Benoît Magimel X 3:

🍿 "...La Salope…… La Salope.... La Salooope..."

Magimel made his debut performance as a 12 year old delinquent in the quirky comedy Life Is a Long Quiet River, which tackled the question of Nature vs. Nurture in a wry and unexpected way. 2 babies get swapped at the hospital out of spite. One belongs to a rich family, the other to a poor one.

I never heard of it before, didn't know what to expect - and enjoyed it very much. 7/10.

🍿 The Bridesmaid, my 11th Amour Fou thriller by Claude Chabrol, made 6 years before his death. It started effortlessly and smooth, and was a delight to watch. But then Magimel meets and falls hopelessly in love with an enigmatic, 'unusual' woman, who's also a compulsive liar and a psychotic nutcase, and the rest just didn't work out. 3/10.

🍿 In Putain de Porte from 1994, 4 guys, including very young Vincent Cassel, Mathieu Kassovitz, and Magimel try to crash a party they were not invited to. M'eh.

🍿

3 by Dutch Bert Haanstra:

🍿 Glass, a short documentary from 1958, and the first Oscar win for The Netherlands. A highly-satisfying jazzy poem with terrific score, performed by The Pim Jacobs Quintet. My best film of the week - 10/10.

🍿 Zoo, made 3 years later, is similarly wonderful. Filmed with hidden camera, it draws parallels between the animals at the zoo and the many visitors who come to observe them, but really, behave in exactly the same ways. 9/10.

🍿 Fanfare was another successful comedy which he directed in 1958, and one which for decades, was “the most popular of all Dutch films”. It's a charming low-brow entertainment [what the Danes call 'Folkekomedie'] about a musical feud in a small touristy village. Its bucolic country all the way: Cows in the meadows, beer steins in the coffee hall, love in the haystacks, a trombone band, the whole nine yards. The only things missing were Gouda cheese wheels, wooden clogs and stork nests.

🍿

2 with Anne Miller:

🍿 I'm getting more and more enamored with old-fashioned musicals, especially from the technicolor era, and all the ones with Fred Astaire. He was such a happy dancer! Easter parade is a Pygmalion story with the usual power imbalance: He's 49, and Judy Garland is 26. But they were so wonderful! Ann Miller, (as was her custom I guess), played the the third wheel to their romance.

🍿 I think that Room Service was the only Marx Brothers comedy I haven't seen before. Their best comedies were masterpieces, but the weak ones were pitiful. The whole plot was about the three of them not able to pay their hotel bill, so basically it was "based on a true story". Ann Miller and young Lucille Ball served as background decorations. Jumpin' butterballs! 2/10.

🍿

My friend Simon is going through the classic works of Russian literature (Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Etc.), and is currently heavy into Nikolai Gogol. So in sympathy I tried watching the 1926 silent Soviet version of The Overcoat. Unfortunately, I couldn't finish it.

🍿

2 juvenile comedies by Steve Pink:

🍿 "Excuse me, Miss, what color is Michael Jackson?"

In the opening scene of the gross-out guy comedy Hot Tub Time Machine, Craig Robinson pulls out a BMW key out of a dog's ass. Right off the bat, you know if this screwball time-machine story is for you. With ‘method actor’ Rob Corddry playing a raging asshole, (which he seems to be doing very well), and naked cameo of Megan Calvet-Draper. Raunchy but funny in parts. 7/10.

🍿 I shouldn't have tried to follow it up with his trashy teenage comedy Accepted. Jonah Hill, a year before 'Superbad', with about 100 lb. more, young Blake Lively, angry Lewis Blake and Dr. Frederick Chilton get together 1/2 a star (out of 10). For the rest, I could barely stay for half an hour, before having to turn it off. it was "Super Bad"!...

🍿

New discovery - The brilliant shorts of Arthur Lipsett!

🍿 Arthur Lipsett was a visionary Canadian avant-garde artist, who suffered from schizophrenia, and who eventually killed himself. His 1963 montage film 21-87 was a tremendous collage of discarded snippets found on the editing floor of the National Board Of Canada where he worked as an editor. 10/10.

🍿 Very nice, very nice, his very first film from 1961, was just as unique. It was nominated for an Oscar, and was adored by Stanley Kubrick, who subsequently offered Lipsett a job as the editor of the trailer for 'Dr. Strangelove'. Another 10/10.

🍿 Free Fall (1964) was even darker and more chaotic, with definite hints of psychosis. He had a brilliant sense of juxtaposition and collage, both sights and sounds.

🍿

"You made me the happiest juvenile delinquent in Baltimore!..."

First watch: John Waters’ most mainstream attempt Cry-Baby, a 1950's 'Squares vs. Hill-billies' teen rebel musical. Elvis + Grease + Rebel without a cause with Tracy Lords and Willem Dafoe and Iggy Pop and Joe Dallesandro. 3/10.

🍿

“Back to the salt mines…”

James Bond No. 2, From Russia with love, before the series got its footing. With blond villain Robert Shaw, and primitive levels of intrigues and suspense. Best producer fruit-name still goes to Albert R. Broccoli. 3/10.

🍿

More random bunch of acclaimed 10-minute shorts:

🍿 In the Darkness of Time, J-L Godard's 2002 collage of poetic images, juxtaposed into a mosaic of concepts: love, art, memory, death, humanity, destruction and cinema. He really was 'un poète' first and foremost.

🍿 René Laloux 1964 visual essay, Dead Times. A sardonic, surrealistic poem about Man's inherit need to kill everything around him. Like 'La Planète sauvage', the drawings are by Roland Topol, and the music is similar.

🍿 When the Day Breaks, another National Board of Canada Oscar nominated short, from 1999, about a humanoid pig who witnesses the accidental death of a humanoid rooster. 8/10. [*Female Director*].

🍿 Inspiration (1949), my second film by Czechoslovakian Karel Zeman (after ‘Invention for destruction’). A stop motion tale of a glass ballerina and a glass clown, the type of little figurines that used to be so popular then.

🍿 I think this is the closest to how the footage looked (2012) is an artsy but touchy Israeli short. A young man remembers the actual last day in the life of his mother, and how his father by mistake erased the video he had taken of her that last day.

🍿 Bluebeard, a fantastic 1901 film by Georges Méliès, about the serial killer and his eighth wife.

🍿Litany of Happy People (1971), my first by Slovenian Karpo Godina, of the Yugoslav 'Black Wave' cinematic movement. Experimental hippy documentary about the various minority ethnicities in some village.

🍿 Cathedral (1971), one of the earliest gay films that came after Stonewall. A poetic love session between three beautiful guys in a shrine of sheets, which eventually turns into a cathedral. Not for me, but okay…

🍿 Once Upon a Time there Lived a Dog, a 1982 Soviet folk tale about a dog and a wolf.

🍿

James Payne, curator of the channel 'Great Art Explained' gave a 51 min. exploration of Hieronymus Bosch's The Garden of Earthly Delights. A fascinating run-down, worth watching together with the detailed 'De tuin der lusten' project and Wikipedia. 8/10.

🍿

(My complete movie list is here).

[ghostoftonantzin]

Books I have read this year, 2023, roughly in order

I enjoyed doing this last year, so I thought I would do another little write-up of the books I read this year and what I thought.

I've read 52 books this year, hitting a goal I hadn't thought to set. That includes a few graphic novels, but not the audiobooks, which I listened to 15 of this year (I spent a lot of time driving). Same as last year, I've annotated the audiobooks with an asterisk.

I also started listening to Backlisted this year, which significantly influenced my reading choices.

Under a cut, because it got long

Swedish Cults, Anders Fager (1/2) - I saw this was originally published in 2009, and I feel like the first story in this collection somehow really echoes that time. Which is probably a strange thing to say about a horror story.

When Washington was in Vogue, Edward Christopher Williams (1/13) - very sweet, very interesting look at a time and a place I didn't know much about.

The Cement Garden, Ian McEwan (1/19) - I expected to enjoy this a lot more than I did, based on how it's often described as a great "fucked up" book. I think the teenage boy POV just didn't do much for me.

Cold Comfort Farm, Stella Gibbons (1/20) - a reread, for the first time since probably 2014 or so. I enjoyed it (and understood it) a lot better this time around. I got to the back half and couldn't put it down, which is a strange thing to say about a parody of the rural novels of the 1930s.

Nona the Ninth, Tamsyn Muir (2/12) - finally got this from the library. I didn't enjoy it as much as the first two books in the series

Fun Home, Alison Bechdel (2/24) - a reread. The final page always destroys me.

Cassandra at the Wedding, Dorothy Baker (2/25) - Very literary. I think I enjoyed it, though I can't muster up the energy to form a stronger opinion. The scene where Cassandra pulls out the bridesmaid dress she bought was memorable, though.

Are You My Mother?, Alison Bechdel (2/28) - a reread. Scratches the same itch as Fun Home, but doesn't tie the family narrative into the theoretical themes as cohesively.

Surviving the Applewhites, Stephanie S. Tolan (3/12) - another reread, to see if it was as good as I remembered from fourth grade. It held up for the most part.

The Secret to Superhuman Strength, Alison Bechdel (3/13) - finally, not a reread. Fun, erudite, perhaps not as tight as Fun Home, but another excellent Bechdel.

Ravishment, Amanda Quick (3/24) - sometimes you have to read an entire romance novel in an evening. This was fun, though its plot and that of "Mistress" (see below) blur into one another.

Season of Migration to the North, Tayib Saleh (4/7) - I think I would have enjoyed this book more if I had read it in a class where I could discuss it and learn more about the historical context behind it.

The Bloater, Rosemary Tonks (4/9) - of Backlisted fame. I should reread again, more slowly, to get a better taste for Tonk's use of language.

Mistress, Amanda Quick (4/15) - also a fun quick read, though I can't remember much of the plot.

Excellent Women*, Barbara Pym (4/25) - yet another attempt to get into audiobooks, and it semi-worked this time. Mildred sets a high bar for other Pym protagonists to follow, and I thought Pym created an excellent portrait of post-war life for unmarried women and the minor indignities and intimacies that accompany it. Also ridiculously funny, at least to me.

Clouds of Witness*, Dorothy L. Sayers (5/12) - I wanted to read Gaudy Night, but I figured I should read at least a few Peter Wimsey mysteries that came before it. I think my favorite character was Lord Wimsey's mother.

Star, Yukio Mishima (5/16) - an interesting portrait of a disaffected youth and of fame in Japan at the time it was written.

Strong Poison*, Dorothy L. Sayers (5/16) - the first Wimsey mystery to feature Harriet Vane, and my first encounter with Lord Peter's office of overlooked older secretaries, who provides the enjoyable detour of Miss Murchison making an important breakthrough in the case. Not bad, though not super memorable.

Have His Carcase, Dorothy L. Sayers (5/17) - the only Wimsey mystery I read instead of listened to, because neither library app had the audiobook. This one was too reliant on keeping timetables straight for my taste, but I still read it in a day.

Beyond Black, Hilary Mantel (5/22) - possibly the best book I read this year. Bleak, bleak, bleak, and wonderful for it. Yet one of the most cathartic happy endings I've ever read.

Thus was Adonis Murdered, Sarah Caudwell (5/28) - caught my sense of humor by the second or third page. Hilariously dry mystery, and understandable even if you don't know legal jargon.

The Feast, Margaret Kennedy (5/31) - this book is not even remotely a thriller, is in fact sort of an elaborate morality play, and yet I couldn't put it down. The conceit- that a cliff collapses onto a hotel and everyone inside dies, but not all the hotel guests were inside- keeps you guessing at whose sins are bad enough to merit a karmic death.

Starlight, Stella Gibbons (6/4) - a lot grimmer than I expected, and almost ahead of its time in terms of the (I'm going to say) pointlessness of its ending, in a "people come into the main character's lives, stuff happens, but the main two old ladies aren't actually affected" way. Not a book you would expect to find demonic possession in, but it's there and it's played straight!

The Shortest Way to Hades, Sarah Caudwell (6/6) - I find it interesting that all of these mysteries center around details of things like inheritance law and yet all feature murder as the main crime, and also that (spoilers) the villain is disposed of in a manner that does not require the main cast to get involved with the police.

The Sirens Sang of Murder, Sarah Caudwell (6/9) - by the second volume in this series I kept trying to guess who the murderer, and I was never ever able to do it. Not that I've ever been good at that part of mystery novels, but I do appreciate Caudwell keeping me on my toes.

Gaudy Night*, Dorothy L. Sayers (6/11) - finally, the book I read three prior mysteries for. I found this one fascinatingly slow for a mystery and much more focused on the life of women in academia in that era than I had expected. I particularly enjoyed the character of Miss de Vine, who at first seems like the classic absent-minded professor, only to reveal herself to be much wiser in ways of the heart than she appears.

The Black Maybe, Attila Veres (6/19) - short horror story collection, translated from Hungarian. Not bad, but none of the stories were super memorable.

Lessons in Chemistry, Bonnie Garmus (6/22) - I did not enjoy this and probably would not have finished it if my mom hadn't highly recommended it. The characters felt flat and the plot struggled to build enough tension for the emotional beats to hit. I also feel like the four-year-old character did not act anything like a four-year-old, though I'll admit I don't know a lot of four-year-olds.

Hackenfeller’s Ape, Brigid Brophy (6/26) - I would say this book wasn't that exciting, very dry and academic for its bizarre plot, but one detail near the end (which I won't spoil) knocked me sideways and tbh probably made the book for me.

Less Than Angels*, Barbara Pym (6/27) - I had to go back and add this while writing these reviews because I'd completely forgotten to list it at the time. Not as good as Excellent Women, though I also had to adjust to the multiple perspectives as opposed to just one.

Comemadre, Roque Larraquy (7/2) - a reread. Still one of the strangest books I've ever read. Highly recommend.

The Sky is Blue, With a Single Cloud, Kuniko Tsurita (7/3) - I'd had this collection of manga one-shots for about a year, and decided to finally read it when hanging out at the library when the water was out at my apartment. It's very interesting to see her style develop and to learn more about the alternative manga industry.

Mrs. Caliban, Rachel Ingalls (7/4) - I had been vaguely meaning to read this for a while, then found it on Hoopla. Looking back on it, it rivals In a Lonely Place (the Dorothy Hughes one) with regards to drawing California in the mind's eye, though the mood of their particular Californias are very different.

Black Wings Has My Angel, Elliott Chaze (7/8) - the tension at the end of this book is like pulling teeth, it's incredible.

Scruples, Judith Krantz (7/24) - absolutely frothy and frequently ridiculous, but also fun. Their are main characters named Spider and Valentine, and it's taken completely seriously. It's actually a really interesting look at the values and beliefs of the 1980's as reflected through pop culture.

Days in the Caucasus, Banine (7/28) - I was more interested in the sequel to this memoir, Parisian Days, but figured I should read this volume, about the author's childhood in Azerbaijan in the years leading up to its incorporation into the Soviet Union. It provided a really interesting perspective of the Soviet Union from a resident of one of its subject states.

Frederica, Georgette Heyer (8/6) - my first Heyer. I'm impressed by her ability to write annoying younger siblings and walk the line between "overly cute" and "overly aggravating".

In the Miso Soup, Ryu Murakami (8/17) - good, though not my favorite of the year by far. The violence depicted did manage to turn my stomach a bit.

My Man Jeeves*, P.G. Wodehouse (8/20) - I've realized that I need to listen to audiobooks that are fun if I'm going to survive long drives, so I turned to the Jeeves series (I only listened to the Jeeves stories in this one). An interesting introduction to the character, especially since it starts in America instead of the England of the more well-known tales.

Love in the New Millennium, Can Xue (8/29) - I'm not sure if this book is meant to be very surreal, if I'm missing cultural context, or both, but I will say it does serve me well to be a little befuddled by books sometimes. This book has a strange, flowing sense of perspective, where it moves between perspectives and the stories of its characters, only slowly unveiling where it's emotional weight lies. Very interesting.

The Inimitable Jeeves*, P.G. Wodehouse (9/1) - second collection of Jeeves & Wooster stories. Good, though Bingo isn't my favorite side character.

Flesh, Brigid Brophy (9/1) - the beginning chapters are incredibly sensual in a way I can't describe, but after that it inspired an incredible feeling of dread that something would go terribly wrong. Despite the fact that this is a satire of young adults in 1960s London, I could feel emotional catastrophe creeping around every corner. I don't think this was Brophy's intention.

Ice*, Anna Kavan (9/8) - somehow not anything like I had osmosed it being. The narrative flows between reality and fantasy so fluidly that it's incredibly easy to wonder if you spaced out and missed something important while listening to it. The plot is also fascinatingly simple and surprisingly free of actual conflict: despite impediments, the hero ("hero") rarely actually encounters any opposition that seems like it could truly keep him from his goal. This adds to the feeling that everything occurring in the book is barely-veiled symbolism.

The Glass Pearls, Emeric Pressburger (9/13) - the tension in this might have honestly been too much for me. Good, but I don't know if I can read it again.

The English Understand Wool, Helen DeWitt (9/16) - sometimes you read a book and recognize that it's very good, while also being annoyed that what it is is different from what you want it to be. I understood it worked as a morality tale, but I found it limiting and frustrating. I will also indulge in a bit of cattiness here and say that for a book about luxury and high-quality goods, the book design chosen by New Directions for this series feels like a cheap set of children's books. (I read this on an online checkout from the library, so I only saw the book itself in a bookstore.)

Right Ho, Jeeves*, P.G. Wodehouse (9/18) - The fact that Jeeves and Bertie were on the outs for this one did stress me out, I will admit.

In a Lonely Place, Karl Edward Wagner (9/22) - the stories pick up in quality in the back half, in my opinion, though none of them are true duds. The last story and standout in the collection, yet another twist on a vampire tale, really draws its strength from the grimy-yet-glamorous depiction of an art student's life in London.

Kissing the Witch, Emma Donoghue (9/27) - I enjoyed how each story folded into one another and found this book hard to put down. Also very gay, loved it.

The Drama of Celebrity, Sharon Marcus (9/27) - I was reading this for background for my fic, and it was somewhat helpful. It's really mostly an analysis of Sarah Bernhardt's career, with some light theory of celebrity to contextualize it instead of the other way around like I expected.

Malpertuis, Jean Ray (10/15) - I probably shouldn't have read the summary for this book before the book itself, but I'm not sure I would have fully understood the plot if I hadn't. Not a knock on the book itself.

The Great God Pan and Other Stories*, Arthur Machen (10/16) - I don't read a ton of nineteenth-century literature, so I was surprised by how compelling the title story was, especially when listened to. I also found some of the imagery in "The Novel of the White Powder" horrifying and would not be out of place in a modern horror story. The final story was a bit of a slog, though.

Heartburn*, Nora Ephron (10/20) - a relisten to the version narrated by Meryl Streep. I downloaded it based on a recommendation describing the audiobook as turning it into the one-woman monologue the book was meant to be, and I can't think of any higher recommendation to offer than that.

Casting the Runes and Other Stories*, M.R. James and others (10/30) - I knew about M.R. James from popular culture, but I honestly had not expected "Whistle and I'll Come to You, My Lad" to center so much around golf.

Invitation the the Waltz, Rosamond Lehmann (11/1) - I read most of this in one sitting, playing old music through my headphones, which felt really ideal. Setting most of it during one formal dance allows for a sense of insular-ness while allowing the details of the world to be woven in. If that makes any sense.

Crazy Salad and Scribble Scrabble*, Nora Ephron (11/3) - it's really interesting to listen to these essays written during the second wave feminist movement and realize that we've been having the same arguments for 50 years. It's also interesting to read about the minutiae of Watergate from the perspective of those watching it unfold in real time. So many weird, unmemorable cultural-political things that have gone down the hole of public memory! (I need to note here that the last essay in Crazy Salad is, based on my memory of the first time I read it (I skipped it this time around) very transphobic, so I can only recommend this collection with that heavy caveat.)

BBC Radiophonic Workshop: A Retrospective, William L. Weir (11/7) - I first learned about the BBC radiophonic workshop through the Backlisted episode about Rosemary Tonks, and this was a fascinating look into that period of British history and the origins of electronic music. It's also helped me pinpoint how to find that sort of music I think of as "alien abduction music", which is a bonus.

Joy in the Morning*, P.G. Wodehouse (11/10) - I didn't realize this wasn't in the 3-book arc that starts with Right Ho, Jeeves until I was partway through. Still, quality Wodehouse.

Good Morning, Midnight, Jean Rhys (11/17) - despite listening to the Backlisted episode before reading this, I didn't quite grasp what "modernist novel" meant, which meant I was surprised by the stream-of-consciousness flow of this novel. It's such gorgeous writing, though. Depressing as hell.

Winter Love*, Han Suyin (11/18) - beautiful and sad. The main character, Red, is frustrating, even though everything she does is perfectly understandable within the context she lives in.

The Girls, John Bowen (11/21) - the blurbs for this book ("Barbara Pym meets Stephen King") made it seem like this would be both lighter and more horrifying than it actually was. I found it to actually be very melancholy in parts, and surprisingly focused on the emotional aftereffects of murder. The ending, the final paragraph, is gorgeous.

Black Orchids, Rex Stout (11/30) - I'm now trying to find Nero Wolfe books in secondhand bookstores, though I'm limited by the lack of secondhand bookstores in my area (that may be a good thing). I enjoy how Nero Wolfe and Archie play off each other.

The Hearing Trumpet*, Leonara Carrington (12/1) - so, so good, and I'm glad I listened to it as an audiobook, because the narrator, Sian Phillips, is an elderly woman herself and therefore able to conjure up a whole range of different voices for the old women who populate this book.

Mistletoe Malice, Kathleen Farrell (12/6) - I was actually disappointed by this, which might have been a matter of mismatched expectations. However, the Christmas tree never caught fire, and I swore a review I read said it would, so I spent the whole book waiting in vain.

Venetia, Georgette Heyer (12/16) - A delight. Aubrey is a great character, and I enjoy how Heyer has the different characters play on each other.

Great Granny Webster, Caroline Blackwood (12/18) - did not expect this book to have a large section on "decaying old Anglo-Irish homes and their horrors", but I guess that's a richer vein in literary fiction than I realized (see: Good Behaviour by Molly Keane).

Sylvester, Georgette Heyer (12/21) - not quite as enjoyable as Frederica or Venetia, in my opinion, though that may be partly because I waited for almost 2/3 of the book for Phoebe's book to actually be published.

Providence, Anita Brookner (12/28) - beautiful prose, of the sort that makes me realize my own inadequacies in both my writing and my critical capabilities, because I can neither replicate it or describe what makes it so compelling. This book is also so tightly crafted for a story where almost nothing happens. It ends up exactly where it's been leading all along.

[denimbex1986]

'I think Oppenheimer is the biggest film I’ve ever made,” Christopher Nolan says without a hint of irony. It’s a striking claim from someone who has directed some of the most gargantuan blockbusters of the past 15 years – but it’s not inaccurate. At the heart of the biographical drama, which stars Cillian Murphy as the man who masterminded the birth of the atomic bomb, lies a truth of planetary scale. When the weapon was first tested – an event now known by its codename, Trinity – there was a chance that it might wipe out all of human existence. A prospect such as that would probably deter most people from proceeding, but not Oppenheimer; he pushed the button anyway.

“The film I wanted to make couldn’t have been done smaller,” Nolan says of the $100m (£77.7m) film one day after its world premiere in Paris. “It’s not about money, it’s not about budget – the magnitude of the story is what attracted me to it. The fact that Oppenheimer and his fellow scientists couldn’t completely eliminate the possibility that they might set fire to the atmosphere and destroy the entire world, but still triggered the test – the idea of someone taking that risk on behalf of all of us and all our descendants. There’s nothing bigger than that.”

The film hinged, though, on finding the right individual to bring Oppenheimer to life. Murphy, 47, had worked with the filmmaker five times before – on the Dark Knight trilogy (2005-12), Inception (2010), and Dunkirk (2017) – but in supporting roles; always Nolan’s bridesmaid, never the bride. This time round, he was wanted for the top job and, one chilly day in October 2021, the Irish actor received a call from Nolan informing him so. It was an instant yes.

“In typical Chris fashion, he didn’t tell me he was writing a script,” a visibly tired Murphy tells me on the final day of the film’s press tour; in just 24 hours, he will leave the UK premiere alongside his co-stars in solidarity with the actors’ strike in Hollywood. “There was no build-up or warning; he just called me out of the blue and said, ‘Would you like to play him?’ I’d be lying if I said I didn’t desperately want to play a lead for him. I think any actor in the world would want to work with Chris, whatever size the part. It was a dream.”

Nolan has long been one of the world’s premier directors. After breaking onto the indie film scene with Following (1998) and Memento (2000), the London-born Nolan delivered the one-two punch of Batman Begins (2005) and The Prestige (2006), showing that he could steer projects of any size to both critical and commercial success. By the time The Dark Knight became the highest-grossing film of 2008, he had been handed the keys to Hollywood.

Oppenheimer is Nolan’s 12th release – and it could be his least commercial one yet: a chewy, three-hour-long pressure-cooker of a film that’s partly shot in black and white, and told in, you guessed it, non-linear form. It’s well known that the writer-director opts to shun CGI in favour of practical effects: he had a rotating corridor created for mind-bending thriller Inception, brought in real battleships while filming the intense Second World War drama Dunkirk, and crashed a real 747 plane in the complex, divisive Tenet (2020). For Oppenheimer, he went one further – he recreated an atomic blast.

It was just one of the challenges Nolan set himself, to be able to create the film in the way he desired. That vision doesn’t depict the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombs that caused such suffering and destruction – an estimated 129,000 to 226,000 people were killed by the two detonations, which left a lasting trauma that still affects Japan (and, one could say, the entire world). To this day, Western filmmakers have only partially engaged with the true horrors of the atomic bombings. This is Nolan’s interpretation of Oppenheimer’s story.

For Murphy, it’s a big moment in his movie career. Earlier this month, he listened on as his Oppenheimer co-star Robert Downey Jr told him that his life would change now that he had been cast as the lead in “this huge film”. The suggestion, though, that this is Murphy’s breakout role was confusing to some. After all, the actor burst onto the scene more than two decades ago with his appearance in Danny Boyle’s post-apocalyptic horror 28 Days Later (2002). Since then, he’s gained worldwide recognition as the face of Steven Knight’s period gangster show Peaky Blinders, released on the BBC in the UK and on Netflix practically everywhere else. What did Murphy make of Downey Jr’s suggestion?

“Honestly, and I know every actor says this ad nauseam, but I don’t think about it,” he explains. “Peaky Blinders is a phenomenon – it’s all over the world and people adore it – but you can never think about that ancillary aspect of the work, because then you wouldn’t do it properly.”

Nolan’s “encyclopaedic” knowledge of Oppenheimer protected Murphy from becoming too aware of any pressures his director was facing. Instead, he searched for a way to “connect with and find the truth” of Oppenheimer “in every moment” of the film. In preparation, the actor watched David Lean’s 1962 epic (and noted Nolan favourite) Lawrence of Arabia “in terms of the scale and the life-story aspect”. Also on the homework list was Miloš Forman’s Amadeus (1984), “because of Salieri and Mozart, that kind of competitive relationship”, which was echoed in Oppenheimer’s dealings with the slippery philanthropist Lewis Strauss (Downey Jr), an increasingly obstructive figure in Oppenheimer’s life in the years following his creation of the bomb.

The remainder of Murphy’s supporting cast, a who’s who of Hollywood, all deliver. There’s Matt Damon on surly form as Manhattan Project director Leslie Groves, Emily Blunt as Oppenheimer’s admirably patient wife Kitty, and Florence Pugh as Jean Tatlock, the psychiatrist who had an extramarital affair with Oppenheimer. The multitude of physicist roles (there are a lot) are played by actors including Josh Hartnett, Benny Safdie, David Krumholtz and Kenneth Branagh – and for good measure, there’s even Tom Conti as Albert Einstein, and Gary Oldman playing yet another world leader after his portrayal of Churchill in Darkest Hour: the American president Harry S Truman.

It was the assembling of this huge ensemble around Murphy that helped to convey the grandiosity Nolan was after. “Scale in cinema is a peculiar thing,” he says. “Does it come from actions and effects? Or does it come from the most exciting actors of the day coming together to tell a story that’s about the moment the world changes for ever?”

Indeed, for such an expensive film, Oppenheimer is surprisingly dialogue-heavy. Reviews have compared the scenes that focus on the hearings exploring Oppenheimer’s involvement in the Manhattan Project with similar ones in Oliver Stone’s JFK (1991) and Nixon (1995) – and there’s more than a little Alan J Pakula and Sidney Lumet in the film’s political intrigue. It’s also filled to the brim with unsettling close-ups; in some scenes, it feels as if you’d be able to touch Murphy’s chiselled cheekbones should you reach out and try.

However, he bristles at the reminder that his face will be blasted on cinema screens around the world – in Imax, no less – all summer long. “I love watching Christopher Nolan’s films when I’m not in them,” he says. “You don’t have to freak out about the size of your ears or whatever. I don’t make films so I can look at myself. I really don’t. Having said that, I did want to watch this movie with an audience, as that’s how it’s designed.”

It’s how every Nolan film is designed. But with great power comes greater need for box office success. This could be seen as a corollary of making such large films, and I ask Nolan if he feels that this becomes reductive when it comes to measuring the true success of a release. “I don’t have an honest answer to that question,” he says, before tackling it rather honestly.

“It’s a combination of factors. My impulse is to tell a story, but I’m not a filmmaker who works in a vacuum. I’m not a filmmaker who purely makes a film for themselves. I make a film that I want to experience with an audience, and I make them at budget levels where you really have to try and find the widest crowd. I enjoy that form of communication. I think the Hollywood blockbuster, at its best, can reach people in a way that few other forms, including other forms of movies, really can, all around the world. Beyond that, box office numbers tend to be a little bit of an abstraction.”

The project marked a significant departure for the writer-director: it’s his first film centred on a real-life figure. Despite having American Prometheus as a resource, he found that he still had to grapple with the extent of Oppenheimer’s brainpower. This is why the middle section of the film – focused on the construction of a top-secret lab in the New Mexico desert where Oppenheimer and his team could design, and test, the bomb – came as a relief to Nolan.

“Oppenheimer had a whole other level of intellect than anyone we know, but it was useful to see him named as the director, literally, of the Los Alamos lab, and realise that what he had to do, in those three years, was bring together this disparate group of talents. He wasn’t the smartest person there, but he was the guy bringing everyone together to get the most out of their talents. That’s absolutely what I have to do as a director.”

Despite making blockbusters that require him to spin hundreds of plates for an extended amount of time, Nolan is showing no signs of burnout. He is a director who consistently releases new films every three years, often commencing work on the next one months after completing the last. Will this regularity continue going forward? It seems a break is not on the horizon just yet. “I find it hard to imagine not wanting to make films,” he says, a childlike enthusiasm momentarily cutting through the seriousness. “I will do this for as long as somebody would support me in doing it.”

Whenever that project comes to fruition, you can bet Murphy will “always say yes” should Nolan give him the call – even if it means having to endure seeing his face projected on giant screens. “No project is risk-free, but if you’re working with one of the greatest living filmmakers, I think you’ve got a good shot at knowing it’s going to be good.”

But the wait might be a little longer once Oppenheimer is released. Nolan acknowledges that following a project of this scale will take some doing. “It gets a bit more challenging to find subject matters that are different enough and also build on what you’ve learnt as a filmmaker, so you slow down to a degree. But I love filmmaking, and in terms of budget, I would do it at whatever level I was able to. It’s something I’ll always do.”'

[dolllikelove]

Secret confessions of bridesmaids: ‘The dress alone cost me two months’ rent’

It can be the honour of a lifetime – or a gruelling, extortionate nightmare. With wedding season at its peak, Guardian readers share their horror stories When one of her fellow bridesmaids got “sacked” from the role, then uninvited from the wedding, Kate had an idea that she was in for a testing few months. “I was a little bit alarmed by the intensity of the whole situation,” she says of the run-up to the wedding of her friend Stella. “I feel like weddings are something you should look forward to and that should evoke a sense of joy, but I was perturbed by the stress of it all. It didn’t seem to me that she got any enjoyment out of it.” Kate was tasked with organising the hen weekend for about 25 friends. The bride made it clear that she did not expect to pay anything towards it. “I didn’t fully understand the real sense of entitlement she had when it came to how she thought she should be treated as a bride-to-be,” says Kate. During discussions about where they could stay that could accommodate everyone, within budget, Stella told Kate that she wasn’t doing her job as organiser well enough. “She said: ‘You’re not performing to the standard I would expect.’ In retrospect, it sounds ridiculous, but we were stuck in the throes of it at the time.” Continue reading... http://dlvr.it/TBfPLM

[atgvnpoint]

Softly, Benji sighed but he nodded a little bit. ❝You are right. But communication isn't always easy. You know, I'm not the greatest example of communication either. Though, honestly, I admire Bryce and Ludo. Their lack of filter can hurt sometimes, but at least you know exactly what they think and how they feel. I like that about both of them.❞ Benji grabbed a few drinks for them before giving AJ an encouraging smile. ❝Trudy and Bryce will figure it out. Your man doesn't have any bad bone in his body and Trudy knows that. Just like Bryce knows that he fucked up.❞ Benji knew that they couldn't do more than that. Trudy, Bryce, Amaru, and Ludovic needed to figure this out on their own now and what could be a better distraction than TrashTV? Blue eyes sparkled in excitement. ❝RuPaul it is then! I watched the first seasons as well. Bestie, you can watch ALL the TrashTV with me. No judging from me. Especially not with Say yes to the dress. You know which episodes I like best? When they choose the bridesmaid dresses. That's so much drama all the time.❞ He grabbed a few more soda cans and waited for AJ to grab the snacks. With a happy little jump, Benji made his way to the living room.

Maybe someone else wouldn't have talked about this sensitive topic, but Bryce was not someone else. One of the things that was important in his relationship with his broski was honesty. And why should he lie to Ludovic when he saw the same? It was better to be honest and logical about it. Amaru was a problem and Benji was not comfortable around the younger brother because of his feelings. ❝Have you asked yourself why your man is uncomfortable? I think he feels not good in his own skin because he knows that the whole situation hurts you and Amaru. Heard him saying to AJ that he doesn't want to be the reason for you two fighting or something like that. Must suck to be in a room and to know that you are the problem. But… He knows how much you love him,❞ Bryce answered without any hesitation and Ludovic should know that Bryce would be the first to tell him when something was off. The man hummed a little bit and frowned while thinking about Amaru and his feelings. Was this really something you can control? ❝Falling for someone is not something one can control. If you'd be with AJ for example, I would have fallen for AJ anyway. But---❞ Bryce raised his index finger to make sure his broski wouldn't interrupt him. ❝But I wouldn't have tried to get in AJ's pants then. Bros before hoes. Not that AJ is a hoe. You know what I mean.❞ He lowered his hand again and shrugged at the same time. They all don't know what was going on in Amaru's brain. Maybe only Trudy knew it all, but neither Ludovic nor Bryce could ask her at this point. ❝Your man loves you. But he doesn't love himself, Broski. He didn't stay with us outside for the horror stories because he was scared and he didn't have the guts to admit it. And just like that, I think there is much more he doesn't want to admit to himself or to those around him. One day you'll find out the reasons, Broski. Just give him time, he never had real friends. Can't imagine what it must be like to grow up without any friends, no siblings. Your man is flawed just as you and me, been through a lot of shit like the both of us. That's why I'm certain he knows that Amaru can never love him the way you do.❞ With his shoulder, Bryce nudged against Ludovic's shoulder.

"Whatever it was, wish we all got along better. Communication is something we need to strive for if we're going to be a happy bunch of besties." He said lightly. AJ was certainly the father of their friend group, always dealing with someone in their feelings, or crying in a corner. "We need to work better on that, i know Bryce and his never ending nicknames can be a bit much. Whether he regrets it or not, eventually those two will see eye to eye and let's be positive about that interaction." AJ could only pray things work out for everyone, they certainly we dysfunctional at times but what don't siblings do. To AJ they were a small family, he loved them regardless how they went about their day or what they said. Speaking about Trudy, AJ knew her so well and he understood why she felt the way she did. And while Bryce's words weren't meant to be taken as an insult, she definitely did. "in moments like this i think sometimes it's best to step away and give each other space. Nothing wrong with a little moment of healing and reflecting. Trudy needs to focus on herself before she's able to find a small portion of happiness." With all this talk, Benny suggested to watch TV, eat snacks and focus on other things that wasn't Ludovic, Bryce, Amaru or Trudy. "Trash TV, please i've been wanting to see RuPaul's drag race for so long, i've missed several seasons. It's my favorite show if you don't know." he smiled. "I'll get the snacks." he says, moving about to get bowls from the cupboard. "I didn't know you liked Say Yes to the Dress, now i can see something with someone without feeling judged." Aj said while getting a bag of chips, he even prepared a charcuterie board for them, with different items like crackers, fruits, cheese, vegetables and sauces, he also had italian meats as well.

Laughing Ludovic gave his broski a few pats against his cheek. "Yeah, i know. I don't mind, his jealousy turns me on. So you and AJ will probably have to cover your eyes soon." he teased. "But don't worry, you'll live another day broski." As they sat down, enjoying the now shared cigarette, anyone would think they were the ones dating each other, that's the beauty of friendship, however Ludovic gained a brother a loyal one that Amaru tried his best to be all his life. "I think that's no secret, your mouth works faster than your brain. Just give her time, she will come around at some point broski. Don't beat yourself up because of it." Yet, Bryce had a lot to say about Benji and his body language whenever Amaru was near or around. Ludovic wasn't stupid, he knew all thanks to his cameras and the ones he's hacked all over the city and towns. That was his little secret. He stared at Bryce with that look that meant: i hate it here. But he was no bitch so he stayed because his broski's words mattered and whatever his mind thought about was more valuable than anyone else's. "You are right, i'm not blind. Again, Benny can deny, be blind. I've seen the looks, i've seen how "uncomfortable" he gets. Do you think i like seeing that? i'd rather wait, just sit and wait. I know, and i'm aware broski. And to be honest, we don't deserve AJ - he's too kind of a soul." As comforting as Bryce's concern and the squeeze on his arms were, Ludovic's jealousy was far beyond deadly. His anger is catastrophic at best. Slowly he found ways to deal with his inner turmoil, his darkness only grew bigger each time. Weirdly enough, his darkness felt nonexistent, dormant. But it was there. "I know he does, but does he know how much i love him? is he aware that no one else will love him the way i do. Amaru's love could be true, but having him falling for someone i love, it's outrageous work. I don't think i can forgive him. Benny can be crazy, i still love him in all his forms. Something Amaru will never be able to."

[nocrumbsonmyjewellery]

thinking about objects for nostalgic adornment.

i was getting caught. i grew excited about the knife, the seedpod and the fossil, their connections in my mind and visually, their place in the world, then realising they had little technical relation to my idea. i was feeling stuck in my original idea that these objects must be those found at a beach, collected and pocketed on a rainy day. but, the whole point of design is that it evolves, and if i'm excited about this avenue it ought to be explored.

the above objects were gathered from around my home, where they've sat since they were given, made or came home, in pocket or hand. each one has importance to me, though it is only i who could see that. i thought i might write a little description for them, one by one.

the knife brooch - one of my mums keepsakes from her and my dads time abroad. when they were in their mid twenties, after saving for years, they sold nearly everything they had and took off traveling for as long as they could. as long as they could, turned out to be about two and a half years, living off a frugal ten pound a day with any excess going towards a box of wine at the end of the week, or trinkets, like this one.

bridesmaid necklace - my parents married after 14 years together when i was 10 months old. as freshly emigrated englishman they got married at a local beach, of course, on new years eve (dad says this is so he could always remember the date, to keep him out of trouble on anniversaries). the blooming pohutukawa trees matched the red of mums wedding dress, handmade by grandma, and my dads button up, bought from farmers, most likely. i remember nothing of the day, having been only 10 months old, but the photos live on as memories, as well as the carved shell necklace i wore as a bridesmaid, along my two older cousins. a talisman of a special day.

purple shell - this is one of the first shells i can remember being fascinated by as a child. anytime we visited bethels growing up, my pockets came home with a good few of these and ramshorn shells. (really they're the vertèbre of a type of squid, so not shells at all, but lovely all the same) they have decorated my room for many a year.

hagstone - this one's story has already been told.

citrine crystal - i believe i got this from a sandbag at crystal mountain. i was attached to it from the get go, and carried it around with me for the rest of the day. family was over from the uk, so we were out seeing the sights. after a visiting par homestead, we were pulling out from the carpark when i realized i didn't have it. dad begrudgingly allowed me to run back inside and look for it, luckily it was waiting were i left it. i've not lost it since.

fossil - i have always collected rocks, stones and shells, as you can likely tell by now, but i went through a short faze of fossil love too. this was bought from a side of the road market, sold by a couple of rock hounds making their way around australia. they were a fascinating pair, and gained a good chunk of my pocket money that day.

geode - one christmas, dad bought me a few geode rocks. together we smashed them open with a hammer, to find what sort of crystal made have been hiding within. i still love them.

baby's breath - mum bought this for me to wear in my hair at my first school ball. there ended up being a power cut part way through the evening when i and near everyone else from our school was getting ready, to everybody’s horror and amusement. believe it or not getting ready in the dark was a lot harder, and I forgot a few things, this being one of them. so i didn't end up wearing it that year, but it has sat dried in a jar as a memento either way. it would have matched the flowers in the corsage bought by ethan, who i went to ball with a year or so before we got together. he had asked, and i'd said yes, under the promise that it was only as friends. he obviously didn't pay any attention. i'm glad of that now.

ring - this is the first ring i ever made for my partner, given on our first anniversary. i had been in uni for maybe a month, which is very much reflected in its craftsmanship. alas, he loved it all the same, at the time it was one of my most advanced pieces. it marks a beginning in many senses.

a lucky life, really.