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sregan · 3 months ago

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On 'Megalopolis'

I have seen 'Megalopolis: A Fable'. My assessment in one word is that it's 'striking'. It's a striking film - which is not necessarily to say that it is a 'good' film. It may be an 'important' film, insofar as it's likely the last film by the creator of 'The Godfather', 'The Conversation' and 'Apocalypse Now', and self-funded.

It's also a very strange film. In almost every scene there's something bizarre - not necessarily in the sense of worldbuilding but in terms of the directorial choices made.

For some reason 'Megalopolis' was not marketed as a work of alternate history, which I think could have brought in more attention, but a 'fable', with a heavy-handed opening monologue about the similarities between the modern USA and Rome. It's ostensibly set in the 21st century in 'New Rome', a modern city with Roman affectations - though it's also mentioned at times that it's still in the United States of America and that Elvis existed in this reality.

The best analogy I can make is that it feels like one of those adaptations to film of a Shakespearean play but set in the modern day, where much of the dialogue has been updated but the main speeches have been left in the original language (indeed, sections of dialogue from Hamlet and The Tempest appear unmodified); but without the source play.

'Megalopolis' is - though few critics seem to be crediting this - a loose adaptation of the life of Lucius Sergius Catilina, somewhat annealed with Julius Caesar (furnishing protagonist Cesar Catalina as played by Adam Driver). The real Catalina is a rival of Cicero (here Mayor Cicero as played by Giancarlo Esposito), prosecuted for an affair with a vestal virgin by Publius Clodius Pulcher - here Clodius Pulcher as played by Shia Labeouf - and accused of killing his wife in order to marry Aurelia Orestilla, the daughter of the consol (who has been merged with Cicero to create Julia Cicero, the Mayor's daughter, as played by Nathalie Emmanuel). All this happens in the film.

The real historical Catalina, of course, was the mastermind behind the Catalinarian Conspiracy, an attempt to overthrow Cicero and Hybrida and seize power. In the first of many changes, Coppola changes this to make Clodius the leader of the plot and Cesar Catalina innocent. While the historical Crassus uncovered the plot and told the Senate, Jon Voight's Hamilton Crassus is betrayed by his unfaithful trophy wife (clearly a reference to Tertulla) and Clodius in a 'Dallas' spoof sideplot, but eventually gets the upper hand and backs Catalina with his wealth.

At this point we should address the elephant in the room. In 'Megalopolis: A Fable', Cesar Catalina is an architect who wishes to build a new shining city, the titular Megapolis, using a revolutionary new metal he has developed, Megalon. This makes startling sense when you realise Coppola has long dreamed of adapting Ayn Rand's 'The Fountainhead'. Cesar is clearly intended to be a mix of Howard Roark and Henry Rearden from Rand's 'Atlas Shrugged', a visionary steelmaker who has developed 'Rearden Metal'.

However, Megalon may have a dark secret - Mayor Cicero says it's rumoured he used his dead wife's body to manufacture the metal. While the introduction of this rumour is cack-handed (Cicero just whispers it to Cesar at an event), it's at least an intriguing take based on a real historical rumour. This in combination with the source material - a scheming politician who launches a coup - might make you wonder if Coppola is playing Sympathy for the Devil here and will reveal Cesar as a villain protagonist (as far as I can tell, he doesn't intend this).

Cesar also has the ability to stop time. Very literally; he can talk to Time (capital T) and tell it to do things. The first scene of the film - which may be Cesar attempting suicide or testing this power for the same time - sees Driver's character on the roof of the Chrysler Building, teetering on the edge. As he begins to tip forward, he intones 'Time: stop!' and finds his body hovering in mid-air, allowing him to cautiously wuxia-float his way back onto the building (remember this).

This may all sound rather Jojo's Bizarre Adventure, but never fear - this power, which seems like it should be the metaphorical crux of the entire film (timestop as a metaphor for stagnation in a dying empire?), is largely irrelevant other than leading Julia to investigate him and then join his agency.

Oh yes, that's another thing that radically alters the dynamic from a hypothetical Francis Ford Coppola's Fountainhead; Cesar isn't a private architect but the head of a government agency, the Design Authority. We aren't told how he came into this role but he begins the film with his own staff, security, and lavish office, which makes him feel like much less of an underdog.

Cesar's Design Authority is pulling down slum buildings to replace them with his utopian Megalon developments - the plot can't quite decide whether he's doing this inside the law, but the result seems to be people forced onto the street - a clear nod, you might think, towards gentrification, although later plot points make this murkier.

Julia sees Cesar using his time stop ability during a demolition, seemingly to judge whether the collapse is safe (though what he would be able to do if it wasn't is unclear). Frustratingly we never see what this looks like to 'normal' people; Julia is the only person other than him to be able to manipulate time and we only ever see it from one of their perspectives. More on this later.

Esposito's Mayor Cicero is initially introduced as a hollow populist, who wants to use the demolished plots of land for crowd-pleasing moneymakers such as a casino. He shows off a slick model of the proposed pleasure palace, which seems to get the approval of the gathered journalists. Cesar, meanwhile, gives a philosophical speech urging grander ambitions ("Don't let the present get in the way of forever!") and offers to go through his design documents. I'm uncertain whether we are supposed to understand this to be what it looks like - that Cesar does not have people skills and finds it hard to communicate his genius - because Driver is given all sorts of quippy Tony Stark-like lines and business as he arrives to the meeting and otherwise reads as charming and personable.

This scene includes one of the most sophomoric film-school student lines in the film. When Cicero menacingly brings up Cesar's wife's death, he says: "Well, as you were the prosecutor in that case, you know I was found not guilty."

At this point Cesar is involved with Plaza's journalist femme fatale (name, I kid you not, 'Wow Platinum') but - I'm unsure whether we actually see them break up on screen - she falls for billionaire Crassus and Cesar becomes involved with Julia who, after mentioning she saw him stop time, receives work with his agency (much to her father's chagrin).

Before it's fully established that she has fallen for him, she follows him and sees him buy flowers and visit what I think is supposed to be his wife's home; we see him place them by her bedside and stroke her hair - she seems to be comatose rather than dead, but when Julia sees the same scene Cesar is alone, seemingly hallucinating. Julia somehow knows Cesar is hallucinating his wife and whispers "He still loves her!". This is one of many elements of 'Megalopolis' that make me think that despite being a self-funded auteur project, the narrative was muddled in the edit and a more coherent through-line must have existed at some point. If this scene came after Julia and Cesar were an item, it might have some emotional weight.

The chapters of the films are introduced with narration by Lawrence Fishburne, serving as Cesar's faithful chauffeur (an element that, perhaps, lets on that Coppola has been pitching this film for fifty years). The 'Bread and Circuses' chapter sees a lavish wedding for Crassus and Wow (sic.), with a Ben Hur-style chariot race and Pro Wrestling-themed gladiators. The effeminate villain Clodius appears, crossdressing after the style of the historical Caligula.

In a scene clearly intended to take aim at religious right virginity pledges, a 'vestal virgin' pop star is used to raise money by encouraging the wealthy to financially 'support' her pledge of virginity. However, as the bidding reaches 100 billion, Clodius bribes the AV technician to display on the jumbotron (!) a sex tape of the 'virgin' and Cesar, resulting in a scandal.

In a sequence clearly inspired by Fritz Lang's 'Metropolis', an intoxicated Cesar - presumably having seen the jumbotron but it's not entirely clear - hallucinates his arms moving in the shape of a clock. I initially thought this whole sequence (intercut with a gymnastic display which appears to go wrong) was intended to represent the aghast Cesar's powers going out of control and causing mayhem, but that doesn't seem to be the case. Instead his limo is stopped by police and he is arrested for corrupting a minor and statutory rape - a genuinely bold choice of peril for a protagonist and one I don't think would fly in any major studio production post-Harvey Weinstein!

Julia is oddly certain he must be innocent - again, the two are not clearly an item at this point; he's her boss - and investigates, finding that VanderWaal's vestal virgin's birth certificate was fabricated and she was in fact born out of the country six years earlier, meaning she was 23 at the time of the tape, not 17. Interestingly, in the newspaper montage showing Cesar being cleared, a voiceover also mentions the footage was found to be edited and fradulent, begging the question of why the birth certificate was even important - I can only think this VO was added after principal photography and originally the character did sleep with a girl he believed to be underage.

Again, an odd scene order - after being cleared, Julia finds a distraught Cesar on top of an under-construction building (what this is is unclear as none of his Megalon buildings use girders like this but it's a repeated location - put a pin in that). He has lost his confidence in his ability to command time and she coaxes him into regaining his mojo; he is able to stop time again with the formula 'For the sake of Julia, Time, please stop'. Again, this feels like it should have more narrative weight than it does; he 'loses' his powers for all of one scene and it doesn't impact his career or plans. It also feels like it should have come before the formal resolution of his legal woes. The hero losing his supernatural powers at the start of the second act and needing either to regain his confidence to use them or learning he must not rely on them is a well-worn superhero trope and it almost feels like Coppola felt compelled to include it since he had a super-powered protagonist but didn't understand or care to put it to any more significant use.

I forget where the scene takes place where he meets Wow again; she attempts to seduce him and offers him Crassus's bank, which she says she will steal away from him. He rebuffs her and in one of the worst pieces of professionally produced cinema I have ever seen, we fade to and from a closeup of the car's wheel driving over the coat he gives her. It wasn't even necessary to cut in - the coat is clearly visible and the audience expects the action from the way she throws it down - and the cut is executed horribly; it genuinely feels like a mistake, like a misplaced clip in Final Cut Pro.

Shortly thereafter, Cesar is approached by a young boy who asks him to sign an autograph. Utterly bafflingly, Nathalie Emmanuel is given the line of dialogue 'Cesar would never say no to a child'. This is a couple of scenes after he is accused of statutory rape; if it was meant to be delivered with wry humour, no-one told Emmanuel. In any case, the child shoots him in the face, having been revealed as an agent of Clodius.

We then get an abstract montage of what may be Cesar's dying hallucinations, with the repeated refrain (I think I remember this correctly:) "I will not give death dominion over my thoughts". It would not be unreasonable for one of the following to happen:

a.) Somehow Cesar is able to not just stop time but reverse it. We see a flower shrinking back into a bud and I was fully expecting to see the clip of his blood flowing on the street reversing. He has regained his powers and now has new incredible mastery. Or:

b.) The damage to his brain means Cesar cannot use his powers. Julia must step in and make the leap of faith - Cesar is injured now but was not so in the past. 'Time: Heal all wounds!').

Neither of these happen.

Instead, we see snippets of what seems to be a mostly cut scene where Julia and the scientist character replace the missing portions of Cesar's skull and brain with Megalon. This seems to be a triumphant return and we see him awake, bandaged but cogent.

In the next scenes, a slurring and seemingly brain-damaged, still bandaged Cesar who repeatedly shouts "No, no, no!" for some reason forces his way into Crassus's mansion to find out why the billionaire's bank has frozen his accounts. This is revealed to be a scheme of Wow at the behest of Clodius. She once again attempts to seduce Cesar (even after he reveals his horrific transparent gold skull-face) but is forced to stop when Crassus arrives.

After this, Wow turns her seductive attentions to Lebeouf's Clodius and persuades him to get Voight's character to sign over control of the bank in a rather shoddy bathhouse scene that I think is intended to show Crassus having a heart attack and aides rushing to his rescue, but which I initially believed showed him being stabbed by Clodius's accomplices. When Wow seduces Clodius she cuts his hair (something Crassus told Clodius to do) in silhouette which should clue you in she's playing the role of Delilah.

At this point we should mention that Clodius has his own sub-plot where he has been repeatedly seen trying to build cred among the mob protesting Cesar's project. The mob is, I would guess, the ultimate antagonist of the film, and Coppola is strikingly loose with his real-world targets here. The mob resembles Black Lives Matter and anti-gentrification protesters and Clodius says they are 'immigrants' whose vote can be bought; they carry SPQR flags that resemble the hammer and sickle; their slogans suggest far-left sympathies; but Clodius gives a literal stump speech on a tree stump which has been cut into the shape of a swastika (real subtle there) and his minion now has a forehead tattoo of the Black Sun, a real-world fascist symbol (I think he also said something along the lines of 'We will make New Rome great again', though I may be misremembering). You might be tempted to think that, given his historical intrigue with Rand's Objectivism, Coppola views the masses as generically 'collectivist', subsuming fascism and communism. If so, Cataline is a bizarre choice for a hero, as in the real world it was he who whipped up a mob to attack the Roman Senate, and Caesar who led the 'populists', while Cicero favoured the optimates (aristocracy). We'll talk more later about Cesar Catalina's philosophy, such as it is, in 'Megalopolis'.

As New Rome collapses in riots, Crassus, who is revealed to be less senile than previously suggested, confronts his wife and nephew in an absolutely hilarious scene where he lifts his suggestively tented blanket to reveal a tiny bow and arrow, which he uses to kill first Wow in a comedic spout of blood and then repeatedly plink a fleeing Clodius in the backside with arrows; each time it cuts back to Crassus he has another arrow (barely) drawn with no indication where they are coming from, like a YouTube Poop. I think, generously, this was meant to be slapstick comedy, even if the context is very dark (aging billionaire murders his cheating wife).

Mayor Cicero semi-reconciles with his daughter (who has since had Cesar's child) on the train as they are evacuated for their safety.

In the climax - I feel sure it's the climax - of the movie, the mob gathers at the gates of Megalopolis, but an apparently fully healed Cesar appears, projected on the golden leaves of his utopian city, and addresses them. The speech is every bit as dense, philosophical, and frankly unrousing as his opening debate, but this time it wins the crowd around and suddenly they are no longer the collectivist menace but the upstanding majority who are now delighted to live in his city as the gates open.

Crassus declares he is throwing his entire wealth (and 'the patents to Megalon', which I guess he somehow acquired when the bank froze Cesar's funds) behind the project, so all's well that ends well? The mob turn on Clodius when they find out 'he owns the bank' (except that no, we've just established he doesn't) and shockingly string him and his henchman up, Mussolini-style; while the camera cuts away quickly it's pretty clear they have stoned him to death.

As New Year dawns, Cesar persuades Julia to try stopping time herself for the first time. She does so, but surprisingly *everyone* freezes except the baby, who has clearly also inherited the power. The End. Someone in the row behind me chuckled.

To be clear, this lends the plot a degree of cogency you simply don't get in the theatre. It's clear to me much of the movie ended up on the cutting room floor - there are fully acted, costumed scenes with different dialogue that appear in the facets of the Megalon crystal as Cesar works but are not in the movie. I think the order of scenes may have been dramatically changed and possibly the ending altered, which is why Driver's character appears fully healed without explanation but only as a projection in the final speech.

The central conceit, time stop, is not used except indirectly as something one character sees to make her intrigued in Cesar, and later as evidence that he has his confidence back after a single scene where he can't use it. Losing it doesn't set back his plans and we barely get a sense of how he uses it in his work normally. An architect who literally has all the time in the world is an intriguing concept and one could easily imagine eyecatching scenes where buildings seem to erect themselves in a blink of an eye, or where from the perspective of a normal human he flashes around a room, drawing up plans and blueprints at seemingly superhuman speed. Indeed, I was fully expecting at least one scene where Driver appears where he shouldn't be, revealing he has been listening in on a conversation or confronting someone in a secure location, because he can stop time to get into any location or do anything.

But we don't see this - we don't even, unless I missed it, get a line like 'Cesar always finishes his projects ahead of schedule - what's his secret?'. Time stop also doesn't work consistently; the first time we see it, Cesar's own body is part of the timestop; he can seemingly think in normal time but his body is suspended on the brink of falling. But later, it's clear that people who use timestop move normally and are affected by gravity (when Julia drops her purse on the girder it slows and stops when it gets a certain distance from her).

The secondary conceit, Megalon, is barely defined. It's a miracle metal that allows things like flowing moving walkways and roofs that fold in like flower petals when it rains. It also bonds with living cells and is eventually replaced with healthy tissue. It sometimes reflects his wife's face, and in the medical montage I think they put some of the wife's hair into the implant, which suggests to me Megalon *is* partially a ghoulish necromantic substance that harnesses his wife's unquiet spirit - but incredibly this isn't addressed in the final narrative other than a dreamlike sequence where he hears his wife telling him 'Go to her', apparently permission for him to move on. Again, it feels like a late-era MCU production cut to hell by studio interference - except there's no studio.

There's also an ambiguous line where Mayor Cicero seems to admit *he*, not Cesar, killed her - I think the intent of this line is he is willing to publicly admit he tampered with evidence to convict Cesar if Cesar breaks up with his daughter. Cesar later tells Julia his wife killed herself because of his obsessive focus on work and we have no reason to doubt him.

It's all such a weird missed opportunity - clearly you're meant to initially wonder if Cesar did kill his wife. There's a blink-and-you'll-miss-it newspaper headline that says the death was a 'Hitchcockian mystery' - which suggests a locked-room murder. Now, who can enter a room, kill someone, and leave to have an alibi elsewhere, all in the blink of an eye? Surely, surely this was intended to be explored at some point; less Chekhov's gun being visible over the fireplace and more being shoved up your nostril in the first act.

The tertiary conceit - New Rome itself - is intriguing as a stylistic choice. It's overtly a fable so it would seem churlish to ask how this Roman city-state exists in a world where both the USA (of which it's seemingly a part) and USSR existed. The limits of the budget are visible in the lack of stylisation in some areas (extras' costumes, cars, offices) but I didn't find it too offensive. I did notice that the architecture we see associated with Cesar early in the film is clearly Art Deco, but the Megalon structures later in the film are postmodern sweeping leaf-life structures, as though Coppola changed his mind about what the future looks like some time in the fifty years since first conceiving the movie.

The central conflict of the film is thornier. You might assume that Cicero represents populist, 'need'-based politics ("People need help now," the mayor says, objecting to Cesar's grand vision of a better city), while Cesar is a Randian rugged individualist, except that's not quite what we're shown in the final cut.

The Mayor's character isn't consistent - by the midway point he's become a law and order figure while the sleazy collectivist mantle has been passed to Clodius and the anti-gentrification rioters. And Cesar being a government official mixes the message on 'lone genius architect' - where we do get an insight into the philosophy of Cesar Catalina, it's also not especially Randian. The character talks repeatedly about the need for 'debate' - that even starting to talk about what we should do, or agreeing that we should talk, is already utopia. He responds to the Mayor by suggesting that 'people's futures' are as important as their present. I also think at one point he says civilisation was a mistake, which is a startling remark from a protagonist but which seems to be something Coppola has floated in real life (seemingly believing there was a utopian matriarchy before history). So at best I think you can argue he takes a broadly long-term-self-interest rationalist view and is being contrasted with the short-term populist Mayor and the short-term instant-gratification rioters.

He also briefly (as in, a single line) advocates for debt nullification, which was a position of the real Cataline, but which doesn't really seem to gel with anything else in the movie - we never get the sense that Cesar hates Crassus lending money and aren't shown the effects of usury on the people.

The cast of actors - including John Voight, and DB Sweeney who starred in the ill-fated Atlas Shrugged adaptation - makes me think it was sold as a rightish-wing endeavour, but I can't imagine the apparent both-sidesism on display will satiate red-blooded culture war types.

Certain aspects of the film also felt quite dated - the use of sapphism to shock and titilate (and the curious line where Cesar, challenged by a gossip columnist to confirm he prefers women, insists 'Everyone prefers women. Even women prefer women'); contrasted with the effete, crossdressing villain Clodius.

What's most striking (I said it was the salient word) about 'Megalopolis' is how much potential each element has relative to how it's actually used on-screen. Some of this is the tight budget constraints necessitated by Coppola burning through his own money to fund the film - the SFX were generally decent though I noticed at least one truly shoddy effect where characters walk into an idyllic field which is clearly a separate plate, and their bodies are sliding left-to-right as though walking on ice.

How might I re-imagine 'Megalopolis'? Keeping most of the beats and trying to refine the message rather than changing it:

- Cesar as a private architect, not a government agency. Put Crassus in the role of a Gail Wynand; a wealthy man and potential patron.

- Cesar has built a reputation as the man who always has time - he finishes every project ahead of schedule and under budget; his demolitions always proceed flawlessly and his staff have no idea how he does it.

- The Mayor champions sweetheart deals with contractors for cheap, trashy buildings that will fall down in thirty years (this might have been in the script at some point as Cesar calls him a 'slum lord') while Cesar wants to use Megalon to create an Art Deco utopian development.

- Julia sees Cesar stop time and he offers her a job. He demonstrates how when his staff see him flash around at super-speed he is really doing all the laborious work of drawing up plans in real time, totally alone as he previously had no-one who could do what he did.

- The press casts doubt on Megalon, with the unions pushing for proven materials like concrete and steel. A ghastly rumour emerges that Megalon contains human DNA. Cesar gives a speech, asking what would happen if the first architects using steel had faced the same resistance. What about fire?

- Julia proves her worth by securing a contract for Cesar to redevelop a large slum after a devastating fire, elbowing out her father's friends who want to use the same cheap cladding that caused the fire in the first place (anticipates and deflects viewer criticism about safety).

- Romance develops with Julia and Cesar. Scenes where they go out into the city and stop time together. Julia is pregnant.

- Clodius undermines Cesar by throwing red tape in his way. Cesar appears in his home and confronts him, showing a sinister edge, but ultimately leaves. Clodius uses this to deduce Cesar's time powers.

- Crassus's wedding is a huge event with (as in the film), chariot races and gladiatorial games. Cesar, Mayor Cicero, Julia and Clodius all attend.

- Instead of the vestal virgin scandal, Cesar is publicly accused of killing his first wife and the shock causes him to lose his control over time, causing chaos throughout the city. Unable to continue his work he locks himself away in his office.

- Time is frozen throughout the city; Cesar is subconsciously holding everything together so it doesn't change or decay (timestop as metaphor for stagnation!). Time only passes for objects if someone is holding them and if you drop them they freeze in place. If someone dies they freeze in place. We see how the city is surviving in this odd apocalypse.

- Julia investigates with a more murder-mystery focus - it's a locked-room murder and Cesar has an ironclad alibi, but a time manipulator could easily make it happen.

- She keeps digging however and a financial motive emerges for Clodius. She confronts Crassus who admits he covered up for his nephew; everything that looked supernatural about the death was possible with enough money. Facing disgrace he throws himself from the top of his skyscraper and his body freezes on the point of impact.

- Julia finds Cesar who tells her he did use his wife's body to create Megalon but insists that he found her dead. Why? Because love holds everything together (we're leaning into the cheese; amazingly I don't think they try to explain this in the real movie). Having expiated himself, Time once again hears his entreaties and begins flowing normally ("You can move on").

- Julia and Cesar brave the streets to reach the Mayor to clear his name and a mugger shoots Cesar. However, with his new mastery, he is able with a 'kick start' from Julia to turn back time and repair his own damaged brain.

- Mayor Cicero is reconciled to his daughter and meets his granddaughter for the first time.

- Clodius learns of his uncle's death and, blaming Cesar, whips up a mob to storm the construction site, but in a flash of an eye the city is completed before them as Cesar's expanded powers let him include entire construction crews in his timestop.

- Cesar emerges and gives a speech; reflecting that every one of them wanted someone else to provide for them but were ready to use violence to take what wasn't theirs, trusting there existed someone who was willing to be robbed; the city is complete, but none of them will live in it. 'Others, who saw and believed, will come, and they are welcome'.

- Clodius and his most devoted followers attack but the city itself folds in to protect Cesar, showing his wife's spirit in the metal recognises her murderer, and Clodius sinks into the ground.

- New Year's, magic baby, yada yada.

#megalopolis #adam driver #francis ford coppola

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unknowntoyou2205 · 6 months ago

Text

1960's love

Info: Y/n and Steve meet when they were teenagers before he became Captain America, now in the 21st Century the two say their long awaited vows after overcoming it all.

Relationship: Steve Rogers x reader

Y/n smiled as she looked at herself in the mirror, smoothing the white dress she had on. This was the moment she was waiting for, her and Steve's wedding day. She had dreamed of this from the moment they had met back in 1963. The two were at a gathering when they bumped into each other. Y/n had fallen for the blue eyes that she made eye contact with from the moment they left, and she couldn't believe the life she now lived.

Why can't we go back to '63? To sit in those old drive-in seats And listen to Elvis sing While we kiss in the backseat When we'd both make it home past dark From watching the moon hug the stars You'd hold my hand tight As we part for the night

Young y/n giggled as she allowed Steve to lead her back to his dads car that he had borrowed for the night. She waved goodbye to her mother who stood at the front door, watching her youngest enter the car of her new lover, apparently ‘the one’. There was a love hate relationship between Steve and her parents since they started courting, and y/n could only smile watching the awkward silences between her family and boyfriend. It didn’t take much for Steve to be awkward, hell he was awkward for weeks after they begun hanging out. It had taken Bucky to get him to ask her out in the first place.

“Where are we going tonight?” Y/n asked, smiling at Steve as he started up the car. “I thought we might go for a outdoor cinema tonight. Hang out in the car.” Steve stated, glancing at his girlfriend before watching the road. “How romantic.” Y/n joked, causing Steve to smile slightly. “What’s on.” “Elvis performance.” Steve spoke with a grin, knowing how much y/n loved Elvis’s songs. “You’ve won me there.” Y/n stated, grinning from ear. “I thought as much.” Steve mocked her causing her to giggle.

Steve parked near the back of the cars parked and turned off the ignition. Y/n smiled as they moved to the back of the car. Steve grabbed some drinks for them before the movie started, and y/n cuddled into his side, feeling his hand on her back. But neither were them were paying attention to the movie, for all they could hear was the breathing between them. Wanting to be closer, Steve brought his hand up to y/n’s cheek, and caressed it gently before moving her chin up to face him. Y/n smiled up at him before moving closer to bring her lips to his. Both smiled into the kiss as they forgot about the movie, melting into each others embrace.

It's when you pull me close Scrunch your nose Whisper in my ear Nice and slow You'd say you're my 1960s, baby Never leave my side We can fall asleep Under the stars or sneak out tonight

Steve drove y/n home after the film was over. Their night had been filled with love and laughter, yet both wouldn’t allow themselves to get carried away, instead opting to enjoy being together instead. Y/n was half asleep as they neared her house, and Steve could only admire her, with her head leaning against the car window, eyes half shut. Bringing the car to a stop, Steve opened his door and got out as y/n pulled her head up, looking around in confusion.

Y/n allowed Steve to open her door and take her hand, helping her out of the car. Kissing his cheek in thanks, y/n moved towards the pathway up to her house as Steve closed the car door. It was late by now, and all the lights in her house was off, but y/n knew that her father was no doubt up in the back kitchen, nursing his nightly brandy.

“Look.” Steve whispered in her ear, pointing up to the sky. Y/n looked up to see the night stars and half moon up above them. “It’s beautiful.” Y/n whispered in awe. “Come on.”

Steve tugged at y/n’s hand and moved towards the steps of y/n’s house. Sitting on them, Steve pulled y/n to sit beside him before wrapping an arm around her shoulders, pulling her close to him. Y/n sighed in content and curled into her boyfriend, enjoying each others company.

“I want my life to be with you y/n. Everything I do will be for you.” Steve whispered, placing his head on her shoulder, kissing it gently. “I believe you are the one for me, never let me go.” Y/n stated, looking at him through her lashes.

Steve scrunched his nose a little and y/n giggled as he peppered kisses along her face.

Our parents may worry But we both know that we're fine They say teenage love don't last but I got hope for you and I

Y/n came home crying after her night out with Steve. They had spent the night with Bucky who had joined the army, and Steve had announced that he had applied to possibly join the army. Steve came to her door, and stepped in but didn’t dare enter the house as y/n’s parents came to see what was going on. Seeing his daughters state, y/n’s father glared at Steve and stalked towards him.

“Dad no.” Y/n stated, glancing at her father. “Y/n..” Steve started to say but y/n put her hand up. “I don’t want to talk to you right now Steve. Please leave.” Y/n stated.

Steve glanced at y/n’s mother who nodded at him to leave before moving to comfort her daughter. Looking at his girlfriends father who still stood with a hard look on his face, Steve sighed and hung his head as he left for the night. Y/n allowed her mother to guide her to the living room, sitting down on the couch before her mother left to the kitchen. Soon there was a warm cup of coco in her hand and her mother sat beside her, rubbing her back as her father sat opposite them, brandishing his brandy.

“I told you he was no good for you.” Y/n’s father started. “y/f/n” Your mother scolded him with a harsh look. “Well he is. Young timid guy like him is no good for her.” “He’s joining the army.” Y/n sniffed, causing her father to get an outburst of laughter. “Maybe it’s best that you guys ended it then, hmm.” Y/n’s mother stated, tucking some hair behind her ear. “End it?” Y/n asked, scrunching her eyes in confusion, “We haven’t ended anything mum.” “Young love doesn’t last love, it’s okay for it to end. There’ll be others.” “I still love him mum, and he loves me. I just , don’t know what I’ll do if he gets in. I worry about him mum.” “Tsk, love. What do you know about love at this age.” Her father commented.Y/n glanced at her father and could only cry more at the remark that she would normally laugh at. Y/n’s mother sighed and wrapped her arms around her daughter, not wanting to listen to her cries.

Why can't we go back to '63? To seat on those old diner seats And you'll make fun of me but I don't mind it When the roads are bare You speed to make me scared But then you'll stop 'Cause you know I'm a good girl at heart

Y/n and Steve sat together opposite Bucky as they chatted about how life had been back home. It had been 2 years since Steve had joined the army and y/n couldn’t of been more proud of him. While at first she had been hesitant about her boyfriend joining the army, she managed to oversee her worries, and despite nothing but fear being present when Steve told her that he was going to take part in a new super soldier serum experiment with Mister Stark, her fears became nothing but bubbles that evaporated in the air. Steve had grown great success from his time in the army. Besides, she wouldn’t lie that the serum lead to certain eye excitement.

“So what have you been up to y/n? Any fellas we need to watch out for?” Bucky winked at y/n as Steve shifted in his seat, his arm around her shoulders tightening. “Now Bucky you know I only have eyes on one man, even if I rarely see him.” Y/n joked back, placing a hand on Steves thigh. Steve looked down at y/n with a smile and kissed her cheek . “But to answer your question, nothing much. Still working away, nothing special.” Y/n shook her head, leaning it on her lovers shoulder. “Little bookwork here, never away from them.” Bucky joked causing Steve to laugh. “Well at least the worst thing she could get is a papercut.” Steve joked back and y/n fake laughed at the soldiers humour. “Very funny guys.” Y/n smiled, allowing a yawn to slip out. “Someone’s getting tired.” Steve stated, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “No I’m not.” y/ denied, not wanting the night to end. “Why don’t we call it a night. We’ve early call tomorrow anyway.” Steve stated, looking at Bucky to avoid seeing y/ns look at sadness.

Bucky smiled back at y/n softly before reaching over and squeezing her arm as the group of three stood up from their booth. Y/n and Steve greeted Bucky goodnight before leaving in different directions. Steve still drove his fathers car, not wanting to spend money on something he would rarely be driving. Y/n often kidded with him calling hi a cheap skate, but Steve also knew that he would need his money for other things, particularly something for a certain someone.

Driving back to y/n’s , Steve looked over at his girl wit ha childish grin on his face. Knowing what was about to happen, y/n gripped her chair as Steve began to press his foot onto the gas pedal. The road way to y/n’s was straight and quiet, and Steve had gotten into the habit of racing down it, knowing how y/n would react. As usual, y/n pressed herself into her seat before gripping Steve’s arm, a signal that she had enough. A small part of y/n loved his antics since he would never push it too far, but the adrenaline was enough to make her body grow with fright. And as they reached y/n’s house, Steve would move towards his girls car door, and open if for her. In return, y/n would give him a brief kiss before pecking his check and running to her door, waving Steve off as he drove down the road.

It's when you pull me close Scrunch your nose Whisper in my ear Nice and slow

Steve had collected y/n from work and was now heading towards her home. Y/n could tell he was nervous, but refused to ask as she knew it was most likely to do with the mission he was starting this evening. Every mission regarding flying left him uneasy, as he knew the risks that came with it. So did y/n, but she refused to acknowledge them, for being a soldiers girlfriend had risks. If they were married than she could live on army grounds, but neither of them were in a rush, being only 22 to them meant they had years.

Goodbyes before a mission were always emotional. Y/n could never stop the tears that fell, and Steve was always left with a sinking feeling in his chest, knowing he was going to be away from his love for a while. The two had a strong relationship so he knew she would never stray, but leaving her was always something that left the two of them in a bubble of loneliness. So stepping out of the car, Steve patted his pocket before walking over to y/n’s side, opening the door for her.

“How are you gone this time?” Y/n asked as he helped her out, allowing him to wrap his arms around her waist. “A week, I’ll be back before you know it.” Steve stated, pecking her nose, causing her to smile a little. “But I have something for you.” “For me?” She asked, watching in confusion as he stepped back slightly with nerves visible.

Steve hands shook slightly as he dug into his pockets, grabbing the box he had been carrying for the past week while he tried to find the right moment to ask. Eyeing his movement, y/n’s eyes widened when she seen the small box.

“Steve…” Y/n started, knowing it was something expensive. “Y/n, please let me talk before I stop myself, again.” Steve spoke with a slight laugh. “Sorry.” Y/n giggled. “Y/n y/l/n, these past few years with you have been nothing short of amazing. I have enjoyed every moment with you. I won’t drag this on in fear of choking up so I will just say it. Y/n my life will not be complete without you, would you do me the honour, of becoming my wife.” Steve asked, opening the box in front of him. “You know your supposed to get down on one knee.” y/N JOKED to try stop the tears, and Steve looked down before starting to move. “No, no Steve, it’s okay.” Y/n laughed again, grabbing his arms to prevent him from moving. “Of course I’ll marry you.”

Steve couldn’t help the grin that came to him as y/n threw her arms around him, hugging him as the tears of happiness fell down her cheeks. Kissing her head, Steve pulled back and laughed, taking y/n’s hand before sliding the ring on her finger. Y/n looked at it in awe before looking at Steve. Bringing her hand behind his head, she pulled him into a kiss, and Steve melted into her, bringing her towards him.

“I love you Steve Rogers.” Y/n stated, bringing her hand through his hair. “I love you too, so much.” Steve smiled, kissing her cheek and burying his head in her shoulder.

'Cause you're my 1960s, baby Promise me, you'll never leave my side Stay with me forever 'Cause I can't live without you tonight

Y/n sat at the dinner table admiring her ring. Her mum was telling her the story of how Steve had asked her father for her hand in marriage, and it was a funny story to say the least. It nearly with Steve having bruises and her father having a sore hand had her mother not walked in. But her mother knew Steve made her daughter happy and that was all that mattered to her.

"I think a small wedding would be best. Have family we love and friends we care about. No need to over complicate things." Y/n said to her mum as she finished making the dinner. "I couldn't agree more." Her mother replied, straining the water from the veg. "Or maybe even just Y/n stopped talking as she heard a knock on the door. “Get that love will you?” y/n’s mother asked her daughter as she placed plates on the table.

Y/n sighed but got up, moving towards the door. She scrunched her eyes as she opened it, seeing a woman dressed in military style suit and a man in a suit beside her.

“Hello?” She asked, eyeing the two in front of her. “Hi, y/n l/n?” The woman spoke. “Yes?” “I’m Peggy Carter, this is Mr Stark. We work with Steve within the army. I’m afraid we have some bad news.” “No.” Y/n begged, her mind turning to the worst. “Unfortunately Steve Rogers aircraft took a hit, we lost contact with him about 3 hrs ago.” Mr Stark spoke, clearing his throat. “Steve has been lost on mission. He died during impact.” Peggy stated, watching as the woman in front of her froze in shock. “No, please no.” Y/n begged, her legs growing weak. “He asked me to tell you that he loved you, and he’s sorry that he couldn’t be your forever.” Peggy spoke, placing a hand on y/n’s shoulder.

Time stopped as y/n could only scream as she feel to the floor. Hearing her daughters cries, y/n’s mother came to the door to see what the commotion was about. Seeing her daughter on the ground she took one look at the man and woman at her door before putting the pieces together. She heard a car pull up as she bent down to comfort her daughter.

Mr l/n looked at his front door in confusion as he got out of his car. He could only see the back of the two guests as he walked up, but as they turned to look at him he seen his wife comforting their inconsolable daughter. He greeted the two with a nod before they turned back to the two women.

“Again, I am so sorry.” Peggy stated, before the two left. “He’s gone, he’s gone.” Y/n cried out, gripping her mothers arm as she weeped.

Her mother could only shush her as her father watched on.

You're my 1960s, baby Never leave my side Stay with me forever 'Til we die

Y/n smiled as she felt arms wrap around her waist, Steve coming into the mirrors picture as she hummed, leaning her body back to rest against his chest. The two never spoke about how y/n had come to be in this generation, but that never mattered to Steve. Steve never knew fully what had had happened to y/n, and y/n didn’t see a reason to tell him. All he knew was that y/n’s family had witches in the past, and somehow it had remained dormant for many years before y/n was born. But none of that mattered to them, all they cared about was that they had found each other, and now they could spend forever, just as they had promised.

“Hey you.” Steve smiled, nuzzling into y/n’s neck. “Hey.” Y/n breathed, giggling as Steve pecked her collar. “I was wondering where you got to.” Steve said, looking at her through the mirror. “Just came for a quiet moment, remembering everything.” Y/n sighed, looking down as she started playing with Steve’s hands. “Y/n, love.” Steve sighed, he always hated the thought of the pain y/n could have had after Peggy came with the news of his loss. “Hey, it’s okay. I wouldn’t change a thing when I got you back in the end.” Y/n comforted him, placing a hand on his check as she looked at him through the mirror.

Y/n sighed in content as he melted under y/n’s touch. There was always something about y/n that made him feel at ease. Every mission forgotten once they were in each other’s arms. The worry of each other’s lives left in the back of their minds. Y/n could only smile as she moved her head to kiss his cheek, and Steve shifted his head to catch her lips.

“They’re waiting on us for the first dance.” Steve spoke, deciding to part their heated kiss. “We’ve waited nearly 100 years for it, they can wait a little longer.” Y/n joked as Steve spinned her around to face him fully. “Yes well, I think Tony is lacking patience.” Steve joked, and y/n giggled, knowing how impatient their friend was. “Well than let’s not keep them waiting any longer, my husband.” Y/n stated, grinning at the new title. “My wife.” Steve joked back, offering his elbow as he moved away from her.

They say young love never lasts But we'll prove 'em wrong tonight 'Cause you're my 1960s, baby Tonight

Their first dance song was one that y/n had fallen in love with when she first heard it. It told their story perfectly, even if very few knew it. Their young love lasted beyond many years, far more than people expect. Y/n couldn’t get rid of the smile on her face as Steve led her across the dance floor. Her eyes caught an old woman who sat in a wheelchair in the corner. The woman who had once told y/n that her love was taken from her now sat watching them get married. It became a full circle, and y/n couldn’t be happier.

“Your my 1960’s baby, tonight.” Steve murmered under his breath as he twirled y/n one more time before dipping her. “I love you Rogers.” Y/n spoke, running a hand through his hair. “I love you too, Rogers.” Steve grinned as he brought her back up, pulling her in for a kiss.

#Spotify #steve rogers x reader #avengers #marvel #steve rogers #rogers x reader

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arcsystemworksofficial · 1 year ago

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Plz talk about leo whitefang guilty gear

He doesn’t talk about it much these days but Leo Whitefang used to be in an amateur barbershop quartet. Of course, he was the baritone. None of the other members of the quartet are important to the world of Guilty Gear but they're all living pretty comfortable lives and they meet together once a year on principle.

Leo Whitefang isn’t the only Guilty Gear character with a musical history.

After the outlawing of electronics, there was a shift in musical culture - it took a while for magical instruments (see I-No's guitar) or the public magic radio to be created, so for a period after the dawn of the 21st century, there was a rise in the popularity of both acoustic music and “music that can be performed anywhere”. Acapella and barbershop groups started forming to perform in public places in place of radios and radio stations (which had yet to be replaced at this point). This also led to the rise in popularity of vocal-heavy genres (think Gospel or Doo-Wop).

It didn’t take long for the radio to be replaced however, along with magical versions of electronic instruments, so by the time Guilty Gear takes place, musical genres have shifted back to what you would expect (with just a little more Rock than before). But acapella and barbershop groups occasionally go through a cultural revival, especially for festivals and celebrations - so you wouldn’t be hard pressed to find a couple more Guilty Gear characters who at least dabbled in it.

Ky Kiske was in a choir group for a short period (although he's not a very good singer by his own admission). Johnny briefly tried out an indie music career, trying to do “An Elvis thing”, which didn’t last very long. And to this day Kum Haehyun can be found putting on impromptu performances in music shops when she finds an instrument she likes.

But back to Leo. While most of his former barbershop buddies don't really matter, he did meet his best friend through them. Singing lead in their group was a wannabe superstar with a passion for mixology. Though they’re not important to the story of Guilty Gear, they are still to this day Leo Whitefang's best friend - and help him work on definitions for his dictionary. This man is known as Gem. Short for “Guilty Gear Eminem”, which is his full name.

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searchingwardrobes · 11 months ago

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I'm back!!! After months and months of creative exhaustion and writer's block, this story came to me one night when I couldn't sleep. It's just a little one shot of pillow talk in Camelot that's a little fluffy, a tiny bit angsty, and a whole lot of tenderness. I hope you all enjoy it!

Rated T

Killian wished for the first time for those garish artificial lights of Storybrooke. As Emma said, he was becoming a 21st century man, and he had come to enjoy the ability to see his beloved in all her glory, even after the sun went down. Here in Camelot, however, he had to rely on his sense of touch alone to map the marks on Emma he had come to know so well.

“You and I, we understand each other,” Emma had said once, and the longer they were together, the more they saw it to be true. Though many a woman had warmed his bed, he still felt self-conscious the first time Emma saw the scars that riddled his body, yet she had smiled in that knowing way she had, and had cheekily said, “let me show you mine.”

His thumb now grazed the puckered one on her shoulder, a form of punishment by a foster father using the tip of his cigar. He nudged her hair aside with his nose, then lightly brushed his lips across the faint white line behind her right ear, caused by a broken beer bottle.

“I thought I ducked in time,” Emma had chuckled when she told him the story, “until I felt the trickle of blood dripping down my neck.”

He knew what it was to make light of a person’s past, as if childhood slavery was just one of those things that happens sometimes. There was nothing normal about it, however, just as there was nothing normal about Emma living in an alleyway at the age of ten ducking from beer brawls.

Emma shifted in his arms with a contented sigh. He wished she could sleep, but since the darkness wouldn’t allow herself that reprieve, at least she could find solace in his embrace. “You silence the voices in my head,” she had told him, pressing her nose to his collarbone. If that was the case, he would not leave her side, though the sleeping arrangements hadn’t made her father very happy at first.

Killian’s fingers danced along the jagged scars along her upper back, the newest ones, from when a skip she was chasing pushed her into a plate glass window. That story elicited a shrug and bragging rights that she only missed a few days of work. Bravado – he understood that defense mechanism as well.

They really did understand one another.

Emma reached around for his arm and pulled his hand down to lace his fingers with hers. She pressed their joined hands to her chest, and he noticed the slightest change in her bearing. An almost imperceptible stiffening, and did her pulse just kick up a notch? She shifted again, this time as if she were uncomfortable.

“Are you alright, love?”

Emma released his hand, and using her magic, she lit the candles in the room. Then she rolled over to face him, her hands fluttering, as if she didn’t know whether to touch him or not. She finally balled them up in the sheet that covered her, pulling it up to her chin.

“Do you know the song ‘Brandy’?”

Killian chuckled. “You know my only knowledge of this realm’s music is you and Henry. Right now your lad is educating me on something called punk? Apparently, it was a favorite of his father’s.”

Emma rolled her eyes. “Oh yeah, Neal loved that stuff. I prefer the classics.”

“Like those beetle people?”

“The Beatles, Killian, and yes. Also Motown, Elvis, Creedence Clearwater Revival. I don’t know why, I just always liked the old stuff.”

“And this song? ‘Brandy’? Is by one of these singing groups?”

“Uh, no, but it's kind of the same genre, I guess. I don’t know even know who sings it, actually. I thought maybe you’d heard it at Granny’s or something. It’s about this girl and a sailor, so . . . “

“Ah.” He nodded, encouraging her to go on. He was glad she’d lit the candles, though he still couldn’t see her well. Well enough, however, to see the furrow of her brow and the way her lips turned down. This was obviously about more than a song. “Most sailors I know prefer rum, though. Brandy is a little high brow for our modest tastes.”

Emma rolled her eyes, which was precisely what he’d been going for. “Brandy is a woman. She lives by the sea and serves drinks to sailors. In a tavern, I guess.”

“Aptly named.”

Emma adjusted her pillow beneath her head and rolled over. She continued the story gazing up at the ceiling instead of looking at him.

“The song tells the story about her and the man she falls in love with. He’s a sailor, and he loves her, but always leaves her.”

Killian is beginning to see where this is going. He shifts closer to her, propping his head up on his blunted arm so he can look down at her as she speaks. With his hand, he strokes her arm gently.

“The chorus,” Emma continues, “is what the man always says to her: Brandy, you’re a fine girl. What a good wife you would be, but my life, my love, my lady is the sea.”

There are many things Killian could say. The first thought that comes to his mind is that the man in the song is either an idiot or a complete cad who most likely has a girl in every port. He’s known the type. People probably assume he’s the type, but he was always careful that his one-night stands had the same expectations he did. He actively avoided women who would be a “good wife.” Not every sailor had good form, however. He could explain all of that to Emma; tell her that the song is unfortunately a common tale, but it’s never been his.

He knows, however, that none of those things are what Emma needs right now. So he waits, without moving, his hand still caressing her arm. Emma releases a puff of angry breath before speaking again.

“I’ve always hated that song.”

“Emma, love,” Killian says gently, shifting onto his back and reaching for her, “come here.”

She comes to him a bit shyly, and he smiles at her gently as he cups her face with his hand. In her gaze, he can see hesitation. Fear. He doesn’t know if it’s the darkness whispering doubts, or if it’s her same old insecurities, but this is one battle he knows how to help her fight.

“My life,” he says, kissing her cheek, “my love,” he kisses her nose, “my lady,” he kisses her forehead, then pulls back so he can gaze into her eyes, “is you, Emma.”

Her eyes well up with tears, and a hesitant smile teases the corners of her mouth. “The Jolly Roger was your home for so long. You had nothing holding you back. Nothing tying you down.”

Killian shakes his head. “Emma, you said once that you and I understand one another. You, like me, were an orphan. What is the one thing all orphans want more than anything else?”

“A home,” Emma breathes without hesitation.

Killian nods, then kisses her fiercely, pulling her to himself, his hand tangling in her hair, pouring into his kiss all his hopes and dreams for their future. When they part, breathless, Emma presses her forehead to his, her smile finally full and joyous.

“So I didn’t freak you out when I mentioned that white picket fence?”

Killian tucks her against him, wrapping his arms fully around her. As he kisses the top of her head, he thinks of the real estate ads he and Henry have been looking at, one house in particular that looks fit for a princess, with a view of the sea.

“Not at all, love. I want that too.”

Emma snuggles further into his embrace, her hand splayed on his chest, right over his heart.

“Good,” she says, with that edge of smugness he’s always found so endearing.

He tries to stay awake, for her sake, but the warm, flickering light of the candles, combined with the softness of her in his arms, lulls him more than the ocean waves. Just as sleep pulls him under, he murmurs against her hair.

“You’re my home now, Emma. My life, my love, my lady.”

Tagging: @snowbellewells @jrob64 @teamhook @kmomof4 @whimsicallyenchantedrose @spartanguard @xhookswenchx-reads-blog @thislassishooked @thisonesatellite @xarandomdreamx @zaharadessert @huntressandlioness1 @jamif @undercaffinatednightmare @onceratheart18 @sparlecorn93 @sals86 @pirateherokillian @jonesfandomfanatic @linda8084

I don't even know who is around anymore, so let me know if you want to be added or removed from my tag list!!

#captain swan #killian jones #emma swan #once upon a time #captain swan fanfic #captain swan ff #captain swan fanfiction #fluff #sweetness #intimacy #pillow talk #canon compliant

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chillingwithtavesss · 3 months ago

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"He’s 33. There’s no excuse in not wanting a family." - so, Austin IS OBLIGED to want a wife, children, and family life just because he turned 33? Don't you want to? Jail! Sometimes people write things from the beginning of the 20th century, forgetting that it's the beginning of the 21st.

IMO, Austin won't be about family life until his 40s. His career is developing rapidly, if all the projects already announced are implemented, then his life in the coming years will be a cycle of "preparation for filming - filming - promo". Considering how many years he's been waiting for this kind of life, it's good for him. Austin once mentioned during an Elvis promo that he likes Kirsten Dunst and Jesse Plemons as a celebrity couple. If he decides to settle down, then I think his family life will be similar to their dynamics: quiet, off the radar, but it is obvious that they are a family and love each other. Kirsten, by the way, is 6 years older than Jesse.

Yeah I can see that happening if marriage/family is what he wants someday. I feel like that’s part of why whatever he got with Kaia Gerber isn’t serious

#ausssbutlershortstories

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just-shower-thoughts · 2 years ago

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The further we get into the 21st century, the less likely it is that Elvis will be discovered working overnights at a rural convenience store.

#thoughts from the shower #water based introspection #wet on main #showery contemplation

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eptodaytommorowforever · 5 months ago

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Extremley Rare A Beautiful Elvis Presley Unseen Till Now! Studio Promo Publicity Candid Photo Taken In 1963 Love the Red Jacket He's Wearing Here By Designer Sy Devore Man! This Man Had Class On And Off Stage Elvis Presley Was A Trendsetter In Music Fashion And Culture He Was A Cultural Icon From The 20th Century And Even Now! Today In The 21st Century In 2024 And Beyond In The Future.

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blackswaneuroparedux · 2 years ago

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There are things known and there are things unknown and in between are the doors.

- Jim Morrison, Letters from Joe

Jim Morrison was an enigma and to this day is considered one of the most influential figures in rock and roll history. Morrison’s music - like him - was revolutionary and influenced some of the greatest musicians, artists, and poets of the 20th and 21st Centuries. A rebel and a nonconformist who took the world by storm, Morrison was mysterious but had no qualms about letting out his glorious wild side for all to see, and he believed that in order to create, one must first destroy, a motto that led him to his premature demise.

Many viewed Morrison as a reckless force of nature and a bad influence (we’re talking parents and concerned grandparents). He actually had an IQ of 149 and developed a profound interest in poetry, devouring the romantic works of William Blake and the contemporary Beat verse of Allen Ginsberg and Jack Kerouac while composing his own poems.

Jim Morrison became a legend despite having died at the age of 27, a striking and unique figure who remained in the annals of rock forever. Morrison thus became part of that fateful 27-year-old club that includes his peers Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin. And to which Amy Winehouse or Kurt Cobain would later join in the later decades. Jim Morrison’s death shook the world on 3 July 1971.

There are two different stories behind Jim Morrison’s cause of death. Both of them are tragic. The most commonly told tale involves Jim Morrison going to the cinema in Paris and returning to his apartment to listen to music after dinner and being found dead in a bathtub. He is said to have died of a heart attack. Chosen to be laid to rest quietly, no proper investigation was performed to find the main cause of Jim Morrison’s death.

Another more harrowing story has received more traction in recent times. It highlights a darker picture of his life, one in which he had died of an overdose and was hauled back to his apartment by drug dealers. Jim Morrison’s final hours are a mystery because France did not require postmortem examination at that time. His girlfriend, Pamela Courson told the police that she had found him dead in the bathtub at about 6 am. She also battled drug addiction and died of a drug overdose three years later.

To many, his death seemed like the result of a downward spiral. Fans knew that Jim Morrison struggled with addiction and fame. After the trial, he was found guilty of profanity and denied the charges. Stardom had taken a toll on Jim Morrison and he tried to find peace in Paris. During his time in the city, he wrote every single day. People thought that he was finally healthy and happy. Some of his last pictures capture a young, fit man. The news of his death shocked everyone even though it was not as surprising. Jim Morrison and Pamela Courson have been accounted for indulging in old habits. They used to frequent Parisian nightclubs, the last thing he did before his death.

Living in Paris one of the first things one does is to make the obligatory visit to Père Lachaise Cemetery where Morrison is buried alongside other iconic artists such as Oscar Wilde, Edith Piaf, Marcel Proust, Frederic Chopin, Isadora Duncan, Sarah Bernhardt, Maria Callas, Rossini etc. He’s not of my generation obviously but there is no question that the music of my parents generation was way cooler than anything today. That’s just my opinion. Listening to The Doors seemed like the perfect sound track to a misspent youth in boarding school.

A musician and a group considered among the most influential and innovative in rock history can never cease to be topical. Jim Morrison with his voice and antics brought drama to rock and roll. If Elvis Presley embodied the rock of a shameless performance if the Beatles and the Beach Boys gave the genre an almost symphonic dimension, and if Bob Dylan transferred more literary content to electric format then Jim Morrison of the Doors took the drama.

The first great attribute of the Doors frontman Jim Morrison was his voice and the charisma of his presence. The man that started shy on stage, with his back to the audience, would become an omnipotent monster, breaking down the limits of performance, even if doped by the effects of acids. With him, rock has never been so dangerous and rebellious, without ever losing the jazz of his voice.

Critics then and today have said that Morrison wasn’t a great singer because he had limited range. It’s true he had a limited range as I don’t think he ever wandered out of his range, which was on the low side. I think Jim Morrison was very shy about singing and didn’t quite know what to do at first … he was a lover of words in the first place, and managed to hear melodies that would be a good vehicle for the words but he sang very carefully at first, careful to enunciate clearly and make his voice heard. I think for him it was more important that the words were heard by the audience than that his voice should sounds cool. Later he started coming on stronger, risking some screams and weird voices, but I think he was more comfortable reciting words rather than singing them.

To me it’s irrelevant if he was technically a good or a bad singer. Morrison had a powerful dramatic voice that connected and a great rock and roll scream. Is there anything more important than those things in rock music?

As I listen more albums by The Doors I am taken in by the hypnotic quality of his speaking voice, which is partially just genetic and partially learned through his involvement in the theatrical arts makes even the most silliest of lyrics sound profound and powerful. Of course he wasn’t an opera singer, or even your typical pop singer - he had wavering tone sometimes, and, especially as his voice deteriorated from substance abuse and other life-style related choices, his range drastically shrunk.

To me Morrison didn’t need to have a pretty voice with the type of stuff he was singing, and his unique style made Robbie Krieger’s conventional pop or folk-rock songs sound deeper, more profound. He was a brilliant all around front-man. He may have frustrated some of his bandmates with his behaviour, and I don’t blame them but we would not be talking about The Doors today if it weren’t for Jim Morrison and his voice. I think as a vocalist he was true to his own natural voice and didn’t try to develop it as an “instrument”. I think it’s the conviction and truth in his voice that makes him easy to listen to.

#morrison #jim morrison #quote #music #rock and roll #70s icon #pop icon #singer #poet #culture

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music-tourney · 8 months ago

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Round 1 match ups!

People are strange by the Doors vs Alice's Restaurant Massacree by Arlo Guthrie

Puff the Magic Dragon by Peter, Paul and Mary vs House of the Rising Sun by the Animals

Brown Eyed Girl by Van Morrison vs Respect by Aretha Franklin

Ring of Fire by Johnny Cash vs Heroin by the Velvet Underground

Somebody to Love by Jefferson Airplane vs Pinball Wizard by The Who

My Way by Frank Sinatra vs She's not there by the Zombies

Green onions by Booker T. & The M.G.’s vs Georgia on My Mind by Ray Charles

Return to sender by Elvis Presley vs The Girl From Ipanema by Stan Getz And Joāo Gilberto

Aquarius (Let the Sunshine In) by the 5th Dimension vs Ain't Too Proud for Beggin by the Temptations

Change is gonna come by Sam Cooke vs What a wonderful World by Louis Armstrong

Come A little bit Closer by Jay and the Americans vs Ain't no mountain high enough by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell

Don't Rain on My Parade by Barbra Streisand vs Season of the Witch by Donovan

Good vibrations by the Beach Boys vs I'm a Believer by The Monkees

Wichita Lineman by Glen Campbell vs Stand by Me by Ben E. King

Cactus tree by Joni Mitchell vs Can't take my eyes off you by Frankie valli

Tainted Love by Gloria Jones vs Monster Mash by Bobby Pickett

Mrs. Robinson By Simon and Garfunkel vs Happy Together by the Turtles

I want you back by The Jackson 5 vs Space Oddity by David Bowie

Spirit in the Sky By Norman Greenbaum vs Son of a Preacher man by Dusty Springfield

This boots are made for walking by Nancy Sinatra vs Eight Miles High by the Byrds

Crimson and Clover by Tommy James and the Shondells vs Fortunate Son by Creedence Clearwater Revival

Maybe This Time by Liza Minnelli vs You really got me by the Kinks

Sitting by the dock of the bay by Otis Redding vs Nights in White Satin by the Moody Blues

California Dreamin’ by The Mama's and the Papa's vs You Can't Hurry Love by the Supremes

Like a rolling stone by Bob Dylan vs The Impossible Dream by Jim Nabors

Complication by the Monks vs Sweet Caroline By Neil Diamond

Suite: Judy Blue Eyes by Cosby, Stills and Nash vs Piece of my Heart By Big Brother and the Holding Company

White Room by Cream vs 21st Century Schizoid Man By King Crimson

I Say a Little Prayer by Dionne Warwick vs It's not Unusual by Tom Jones

Be my Baby by the Ronettes vs For What It’s Worth by Buffalo Springfield

Fire by Arthur Brown vs Paint it Black by The Rolling Stones

River Deep Mountain High by Ike and Tina Turner vs Sunshine, Lollipops and Rainbows By Lesley Gore

Blackberry Way by The Move vs Feeling Good by Nina Simone

So Long Mom (A song for World War III) by Tom Lehrer vs All along the Watchtower by Jimi Hendrix

Good Times, Bad Times by Led Zeppelin vs Eleanor Rigby by the Beatles

Dream a Little Dream of Me by Mama Cass vs I Got You (I Feel Good) by James Brown

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roxannepolice · 8 months ago

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Again thinking of how it made no sense that Simm!Master needed to dress up because people would recognize him as a former UK PM. That said, I can see a messy haired history nerd trying to convince everyone the hospital janitor is a one day PM from 21st century getting shut down with the eye roll that the cook is Elvis Presley (the cook is in fact Elvis Presley).

#doctor who #simm!master

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denimbex1986 · 11 months ago

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'Content Warning: Reference to homophobia and suicide

Music serves a distinct emotional purpose within films, and the song choices in All of Us Strangers are a perfect example of music choice done right. All of Us Strangers is a beautifully tragic film detailing the intimate relationship between protagonists Adam and Harry, who are brought together by the prevailing loneliness and longing they feel for deep connection and affection. The storyline itself is heart-breaking as it is without the addition of music, but the two songs featured prominently as part of the story are undeniably responsible for nurturing a devastating vulnerability in the film’s characters, and eliciting a raw emotional response in its audience. The themes of connection, isolation, and the unsaid in All of Us Strangers would not be anywhere near as impactful without the masterful and purposeful use of historically relevant and politically charged music.

[Warning: there are spoilers ahead!!!]

The first of the two significant, featured songs in All of Us Strangers is Always on My Mind by The Pet Shop Boys. It is a bitter-sweet ballad first sung by Elvis Presley, widely regarded as an apology to his wife after their divorce. The Pet Shop Boys transform this melancholy song into a synth-pop upbeat track, suitable for the dance floor, while also retaining the sorrow of the song’s lyrics. Always on My Mind is used in a pivotal scene roughly half way through the film marking Adam’s true acceptance by his parents. The scene is a reimagining of Christmas with his parents where they are decorating the tree together, as they did when he was a child. His mum turns to him tearfully and sings the lyrics of this song at him, admitting how “maybe [she] didn’t treat [him] quite as good as [she] should” but that she’s so happy he is hers. Using this song for such an emotionally charged scene was a masterful choice by Andrew Haigh because of the unspoken, retrospectiveness of the apology. They do not force an open, 21st century conversation, but portray a quiet moment of vulnerability between a mother and son that is far more impactful. The brilliance of this song choice works on multiple levels: firstly, it was the 1987 Christmas UK number 1 so would have had plenty of air time and so does not feel out of place in this scene, and secondly, The Pet Shop Boys’ musical and performance aesthetics promoted queer visibility, so the song acts as a crucial reminder of the elephant in the room being addressed in a scene where no words are exchanged. Whilst Adam’s mother does not outrightly say, “I’m sorry”, her rendition of these lyrics seems, in Adam’s imagination, the most realistic way to achieve such an apology. We can see how much this moment means to him, and so it is perhaps not right to demand more. The film explores his struggle to heal his childhood trauma and find familial acceptance posthumously, so it is natural that he would seek such acceptance rooted in the memories of his parents that he has. His reimagining of this Christmas scene reflects his still-childlike need for love and approval from his parents, and this vulnerable, discreet rendition of Always On My Mind is, in my opinion, the perfect, most beautiful, way to achieve this.

The second featured, significant song in the film is The Power of Love by Frankie Goes To Hollywood. It is a sombre, melancholic song performed by a hugely influential band in the music scene of 80s Britain, and the movement for gay rights and visibility in Britain. Fronted by an openly gay lead singer, Holly Johnson, Frankie Goes To Hollywood created a distinct moment in which the top of the charts was led by an unapologetically gay band using queer and openly sexual aesthetics, for example fetish gear, that led them to be banned by the BBC for a period of time. Frankie Goes To Hollywood can be credited with successfully representing queerness on a large stage and opening the door for more LGBT artists to achieve commercial success. The significance of The Power of Love being featured in All Of Us Strangers is tragically not made apparent until the end of the film where it is revealed that Harry, Adam’s lover, has been dead the whole time. This revelation makes sense of the reference that Harry makes at the beginning of the film, saying “there’s vampires at my door”. This retrospective epiphany intensifies the already intense sadness that his suicide evokes, because it links his potent loneliness to the uniquely isolating experience of being gay in a heteronormative world. His reference to the vampires at his door is a desperate final call for love and connection, for the kind of devotion and care that Frankie sings about in The Power of Love. The film explores the loneliness associated with being gay through the perspective of an older and younger gay man, detailing the way that culture has shifted in the last 40 years, yet the loneliness still prevails. The final scene of the film is where The Power of Love is heard in its entirety, providing a heart-breaking, intimate contrast to the depths of aloneness that Harry feels in his final moments. We see Adam comforting Harry’s spectral form, providing him with the comfort and love he aches for, and echoing the plea that Harry voices at the beginning of the film. Adam quotes the opening lines of the song, reassuring Harry, “I’ll protect you from the hooded claw, keep the vampires from your door.” We then see the bed get smaller and smaller until they become a star amongst a sparkling sky of stars. This scene is done so beautifully it is, in my experience, impossible not to sob at the intimate and loving conclusion of the tragic events that precede it. The ending is open to interpretation, and does not answer any questions that the film poses about temporality and imagination. How I prefer to deconstruct the ending is through the final image of stars in a vast sky, with The Power of Love playing overhead. It does not matter really whether Adam continues a ghostly relationship with Harry, or whether Adam has been dead all along too. I don’t think we should be concerned with finding the answer to every ambiguity the film fosters, but we should instead sit in the emotion that the film has elicited. In my view, the final scene references the millions of queer relationships across the world that are battling against violent persecution, alienation and isolation, and the queer relationships and individuals who have died before progress has been achieved. Adam and Harry are just one couple amongst that sky of stars, and despite the tragedy of their lives on earth they have managed to find comfort and acceptance in each other’s arms. I think that the final image in the film manifests a hope that all the other stars in this sky will be able to do the same.

Without these two songs, All of Us Strangers would not be able to achieve the emotional vulnerability and deep impact that it unleashes on its viewers. Both songs are part of a rich and important history of queer identity and visibility within British music and culture, serving a beautiful and heart-breaking purpose within the film. They are a reminder of the mostly unacknowledged impact of queer musicians on the British and global music stage, as well as how the fight for queer visibility in mainstream media and culture still prevails today. The film itself adds to and is part of a long history of queer films and the slow growing appreciation and representation of queer love stories in the media. These two songs also serve as a reminder of the significance of music within film to create a distinct emotional response in the viewer, and it must be acknowledged that All of Us Strangers would not be in any way as emotionally devastating if it did not feature the beautiful lyricism of Always on My Mind and The Power of Love.'

#The Power of Love #Frankie Goes to Hollywood #Pet Shop Boys #Always on My Mind #All of Us Strangers

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