#i think i might watch dunkirk

[divinekangaroo]

Forgot that I've also seen:

-Inception (the actors/named characters made so little impression on me that I only knew Arthur and Eames because of peripheral fanfiction flying by, and when I started following PB on tumblr went, wait, what, CM was also in Inception????)

Of cm's back catalogue, I've only seen:

-Sunshine (vague memories of being interested enough to learn his name from this movie alone)

-28 Days Later (had no idea who he was, didn't make a mark on me, didn't connect this guy as the guy who did Sunshine, either - case in point at how the visual rarely sticks with me, at some point in my head I'm busily converting all this into text-only form - the only interest was the concept/framing not the characters)

-Peaky Blinders (had to check if it was the same guy I vaguely remembered from Sunshine, but I did immediately go, this is an interesting casting choice given the storyline, I wonder what he intended by taking this role / they intended by giving it to someone like him)

[fipindustries]

oppen heimer style

let me just start this by saying that this is not necesarily nolan being back to form, necesarily. i would place it just above the rest of nolan's dark period known as intersrellar, dunkirk and tenet. but that is not an exceedingly high bar to pass.

he has sadly become a director that i still respect appreciate and whose movies i enjoy but whom i can no longer say is an unmatched genius.

lets start with the bad.

its too long, and its pacing its a little awkward, no need to worry for spoilers here since we all know the history. the big money shot that we were all expecting, the trinity test, it happens roughly at the middle of the movie and after that the movie struggles to reach any other point of heightened emotion as high as that one.

its a solid three hour experience and more than once it had me wondering "ok, how much left, are we done yet?" but i will say this: once i reached the final scene and the credits start i did not feel a tired relief that it was finaly over, thank god. i feel dread, i felt doom and dread. i was fucking terrified. this movie has a good strong final scene that makes you forget of previous tests of patience you might have gone through watching it.

it tries to do this weird parallel story telling between lewis strauss and oppenheimer that it feels like they tried to film two different movies and then awkwardly splie them together. it jumps back and forth between the past and the present told form different points of view and a lot of it feels like it could have been cut out and the movie would have worked just as well. im not sure how necessary was the whole lewis strauss subplot to be honest.

the characters and dialog work a little better than in previous movies although we still get a lot of scenes of people talking in a clinical manner with expository dialog and deep philosophical musings. but once again i will say nolan seems to be learning some lessons, we do get a lot of scenes where actors are allowed to flex their emotional muscles.

in a lot of ways this is nolan's most lurid film. i think this is the first time we get to see breasts and naked people having sex in a nolan movie and it hits hard, both because of how unexpected it is in a nolan film and because of how out of context it shows up in-universe. i dont actually want to spoil this one because the effect it achieves actually worked really well.

and now moving on to the good, if i mentioned this might be nolan at his most lurid, it is certainly also at his most poetic. sure there is inception, but in here we get to see a lot of surrealist or downright metaphorical scenes without the excuse of being inside a dream. we get to see things that are not happening literally in universe but that are an artistic representation of what the characters are feeling. it felt really effective.

the man himself

this is a movie that is very much about the titular guy and trying to understand his inner world, trying to understand who the hell was this person, and honestly, where did he get off.

it seems oppenheimer was a complicated man, whose actions and desitions were sometimes confusing, sometimes downright contradictory (there is a nice wink to this when talking about the paticle/wave duality at the beggining of the film). he was a communist, he was a proud american, he was a genius, he was painfully naive,he was merely following orders but he had absolute control over his little town in los alamos, he worked hard for peace, he created nuclear war, he built a bomb that he didnt want people to use.

i heard criticisms that this movie romanticizes his work, that it may excuse or justify the use of the bomb, that it may be too kind with the guy. rest assured it doesnt. the movie brings up multiple times how the japanese were basically already surrendering, how senseless and callous and cruel the use on japanese cities was, how attrocious and horrifying the effects of the bomb were. and how oppenheimer definely contributed to it. if it shows the guy hand wringing or feeling gulty or trying to be a martyr of sorts, the movie definetly calls him out on that too by saying that its very rich of him to have done the deed and then regret it as if he didnt knew what he was doing or as if he had no control over it. a lot of times the movie shows the man as spineless, as a moral coward, as someone who was too weak to take on a position. "you dont get to commit a sin and then make everyone else feel pity for you because there are consequences!" is yelled at his face.

yet all the same, either because he is portrayed by cyllian murphy and his puppy dog eyes or because nolan deep down still admires who he was and what he did, you cant help but feel bad for the guy and like him still. he was a person, a complicated person with ugly sides that this movie in no way ignores, but still a brilliant man who at the very least had the basic decency to feel bad for the atrocities he contributed to.

going back to the movie itself

its has a weirdly star studded cast. if you were surprised by the sudden appearance of matt damon in interstellar, get ready to have that feeling multiple times during this film, every other scene suddenly shows up a hollywood megastar and it will take a few seconds before you accept ok, i guess gary oldman is in this film, and is that rami malek? and oh right, robert downy junior and oh my god is that fucking kenneth brannagh. in fact the one hollywood actor who is NOT in this movie, is surprisingly, inexplicably enough michael caine.

truly, breaking new ground.

and the cameos dont stop at the stars, the characters themselves are a constant delightful surprise if you are into the history of quantum mechanics and science in the first half of the 20th century. you have einstein of course (presented as this old exiled king, his time of glory long past but still sough after for his wisdom) but you have also bohrs, heisenberg, feynman, fermi, and fucking gödel somehow (they managed to shoe in a comment about his paranoia and hipocondry)

the actual explosion

time to talk about the thing we all went to see this movie for. is the atomic explosion cool? is it big? is it loud? does it go boom? does it look cool?.

suffice to say. yes. one of the coolest experiences i had in watching film ever in my life. it has a build up of a solid 30 minutes or so (arguably its been building up the entire movie) the tensin keeps on rising all through out. the countdown slowly advances, the expectations are at the highest theyve ever been and by the time the bomb was actually about to go off in the middle of the american desert, the first atom bomb ever exploted, my heart was hammering out of my chest.

its fully worth the price of admission and the three hours.

final comments

i want to double back to the poetic filmmaking i mentioned early to comment about the main thing its used for. nolan makes it clear in no uncertain terms the horror that atomic weapons unleashed on the world. the man goes out of his way to make it clear, these things can destroy the planet. we've all become perhaps a bit desensitized to atomic explosion in film, made more and more espectacular with the advancement of cgi. but this movie brings it back home and leaves you with a last message about the danger of nuclear proliferation.

i walked out of the theatre with my legs shaking and my eyes falling out of my skull. i had a hard time talking a bit afterwards, i was a little shell shocked.

so, i guess in the end, my thoughts on this movie are just as complicated as the man himself, the man who oppenheimed the world.

8/10

[go-scottishgal14]

Great essay in The Telegraph, 7/28/2024, hits nail on head imho....

Not even France can escape the West’s cultural decay

Our civilisation is surely doomed when the best Paris can offer is a drag queen parody of the Last Supper

TIM STANLEY -- 28 July 2024 at 7:30 pm

At the Olympics they often sing Imagine, containing the line, “Imagine there’s no countries …” Well, if there were no countries, there’d be no Olympics, which would be marvellous. Who wants to watch two weeks of muscular women throwing sticks and balls at each other? The only entertaining bit is the opening ceremony. Britain did a good ’un back in 2012; so good that it entered folklore, along with the 1966 World Cup and Dunkirk. When our grandkids ask, “What did you do in the clash of civilisations?” we shall reply: “We pushed Elizabeth II out of a helicopter.”

Paris, by contrast, offered us drag queens doing a parody of the Last Supper – insulting Christians, mocking God. When I described the scene to a priest, he replied: “That explains the torrential rain, then.”

It was blasphemous, sure, but it was also tacky; the crime aesthetic as well as religious. You have a once-in-a-lifetime chance to sell your country to tourists, and what did France go with? A dozen men – one with a beard – twerking to Freed from Desire. Actual culture necessitates discipline and taste. In the 21st century, people just “party”, cos it requires zero effort and any idiot can do it.

Kicking Christians is very easy because we have no power and, when we’re angry, we don’t fly planes into things. And yet some people cannot leave us alone. They feel a need to ridicule our beliefs and subvert our images, to drag Christ down to the gutter – as if crucifying him once wasn’t enough.

It’s probably because faith is beautiful. People don’t know how to react to it. When you’ve been raised in ugliness, to be confronted with the profound, transcendent beauty of the Last Supper can inspire awe, yes, but also fear. Think of those apes going bananas at the mysterious monolith in 2001: A Space Odyssey. Beauty pierces the illusion of a comfortably banal existence.

Imagine if instead of the drag queen parody, the ceremony had paused to display the real painting by Leonardo da Vinci. No music. No fireworks. Just Jesus&Co. Millions would’ve switched off the telly – because they’d find it boring, no doubt, but also strange, unnerving, possibly offensive. There would’ve been thousands of complaints. We have engineered an entire existence around pleasure and distraction. Stop the disco for one minute and people might fill the silence with thought, even prayer … or they might riot.

Either way, you’ve got a revolution on your hands, and the powers that be can’t have that.

L’Hexagone faces a fate worse than death: becoming Great Britain

Organisers have apologised for any offence caused, but wise-guys insist the whole thing was a very French joke the world didn’t get. But how French was the ceremony in total?

Celine Dion is Canadian. Lady Gaga is from the United States. “This is France!” tweeted Emmanuel Macron – in English, something one could never imagine De Gaulle or Mitterrand doing. In fact this version of France looks suspiciously American, and drag is another import.

Men have been dressing up as women for a laugh for centuries, and long may it continue. But the art form’s current vibe was promoted by Ru Paul – obviously influenced by Voguing – and the notion that drag queens are apostles for progress is 100 per cent “made in the USA”.

I’m old enough to remember when a drag act meant a bloke, often married, dressed as Barbara Cartland telling filthy jokes about foreigners in the Dog and Duck. The Yanks have mainstreamed this subculture, transforming it into a mass consumer product, which was another reason to yawn rather than boo at the drag disciples. This stuff ceased being brave or transgressive 20 years ago. Like the rainbow flag (designed by an American) or Pride (begun in America), it is banal because it is ubiquitous.

So, Brits shouldn’t gloat over the tawdry French games. If we held them today, we’d make identical mistakes. Our ceremony would also be a celebration of diversity – every Western nation has become diverse to the point of looking exactly the same – for diversity is something one promotes when you’ve lost confidence in your historical identity. When you’ve decided everything you did pre-1960 was racist, and you’ve stopped writing great novels, composing symphonies or painting beyond primary school standard.

The West is culturally dying. It only looks alive because we’re dancing among the relics of what we used to do well – and are so embarrassed by these past accomplishments that we feel moved to ridicule their ideals.

The Paris ceremony, of course, featured a headless Marie Antoinette. Let’s laugh at a victim of an earlier experiment in egalitarianism. It’s interesting how gender always haunts debates about civilisation. In 1790, Edmund Burke – a philosopher writing before Marie’s execution – predicted that the lack of chivalry shown towards the queen would eventually spell disaster for all women and all France. In a world without etiquette or distinction, he said, “a queen is but a woman; a woman is but an animal, and an animal not of the highest order”. Abusing monarchs, like burning books, erodes dignity and encourages murder.

France’s decline is nothing special. In some regards it is ahead of us; in others, behind. The depressing point is that it is familiar. These Olympics have been marred by racial tension, incompetence, poor taste, unreliable railways, filthy river water and terrible weather. France’s fate is worse than death: she has become Great Britain.

[shifterdomain]

Your favorite movie to watch together

A/N: I highly suggest watching (most of) these movies if you haven't yet. I also added in Tom Blyth from The Hunger Games A Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes and have added him to the previous preferences as well.

Jonah Hauer-King

The Lion King will be playing on repeat during movie night. Maybe the sequel Simba's Pride will also play once in a blue moon.

Be ready for a sing-along with Jonah blasting I Can't Wait To Be King.

Tom Glynn-Carney

Saltburn is a fun movie to have on on a Sunday evening.

He likes mysterious movies almost as much as playfully teasing his on-screen brother Ewan Mitchell by pestering him with theories of Mitchell's character. And let's not forget that him and Barry Keoghan also go way back to Tom's debut movie 'Dunkirk'.

Ewan Mitchell

The Mask of Zorro is one of those movies you can watch every week and not tire of.

He likes the idea of a masked man with a somewhat troubled past being the hero and will find a way to make it about his character Aemond Targaryen. Whatever you watch, there will always be a parellel drawn. He just loves him too much.

Matt Smith

Gremlins, especially the first installment, is just a whimsical movie that will always remain entertaining.

Die Hard would be a runner up, but he just enjoys the sillyness that Gremlins has. And it is even better knowing that it used to be a feared horror movie.

Joseph Morgan

Joseph is a big fan of scifi movies, especially Star Wars.

His favorites would be the old movies with Han Solo, but you also like to watch the ones with Anakin Skywalker, interested in the arc of him turning into Darth Vader.

Daniel Gillies

Fifty Shades of Grey.

You both love making fun of how bad the movie truly is, jokingly making headcannons about the story to try and make it better. But failing.

Paul Wesley

Deadpool is one of his favorite movies to watch with you.

Deadpool & Wolverine would probably be his favorite. He loves how unhinged they are and Ryan Reynolds is just a comedy legend. His favorite character would be Dogpool.

Ian Somerhalder

The Graduate is his favorite film, but he enjoys it even more when he watches it with you.

He likes the more classical and old movies and discussing them afterwards while finishing your snacks and tea, or Bourbon, especially because there is something nostalgic about movies made before Hollywood became as big as it is. He enjoys the simplicity of the old school.

Chris Wood

The Scream franchise are fun movies to watch, whether it's Halloween or early August.

He likes the first two because they're new and they're classics, but the first installment of the reboot is also up there, being more creepy and gory. He will also probably be performing songs from the parody musical.

Jensen Ackles

The Silence of the Lambs is a thrilling movie that with the brilliance that is Anthony Hopkins will never be a bad watch.

It's a little spooky, has some humor and shows one of the greatest characters brought to life by Hopkins. While other movies in the franchise are enjoyable, nothing can truly top the brilliance of the original.

Jared Padalecki

Good Will Hunting is a movie that means a lot to Jared, especially with the passing of Robin Williams (RIP).

The movie gives a good and well-read view into the psychy of Matt Damon's character Will. Especially the line 'Some people can never believe in themselves, until someone believes in them,' is a line that really hits home for him.

Matthew Daddario

Grown Ups (RIP Cameron Boyce) is just a fun-loving movie to watch in whatever mood you're in.

It is a campy and funny movie that doesn't require any deep thinking, which is especially good after a long day of work. You can just relax, grab a bite and cuddle up on the couch without worrying about anything else but each other.

Dominic Sherwood

James Bond might be a classic British franchise, but it's always fun.

There's plenty of movies in the franchise with plenty of actors stepping into the shoes of the titular character, so you can always pick another movie in the franchise and by the time you've seen all, you probably won't remember all of the one you started with. The ones that will probably be played most are those with Daniel Craig, Pierce Brosnan or Sean Connery (RIP). There will probably also be a lot of teasing with you trying to convince him to audition to be the next Bond.

Dylan O'Brien

Never Been Kissed.

Are you even surprised? It's Dylan's favorite movie as it's a funny and cute movie. He will however probably be mouthing along the words as you watch.

Tom Holland

Spider-Man has been Tom's favorite for almost all of his life.

Whether it is Andrew Garfield or Toby Maguire behind the mask, as long as it is not him because, like most actors, he doesn't like watching himself. But they're funny and have enough action to keep your attention.

Josh Hutcherson

Josh likes scary movies, but with you his favorite would be Saw.

It's creepy and bloody and has a hint of mystery to it. He especially likes the way you curl up against him and hide your face in his shoulder with the scary moments or the scenes that make your skin crawl.

Tom Blyth

An underrated movie that he loves to watch with you is the trilogy of Sissi, Die Junge Kaiserin with Romy Schneider as Elisabeth.

The original movies are old and mostly forgotten and skipped as they lack the sense of excitement in today's movies. But that old school feeling is one of the things he likes about it. It's romantic and very sweet and also brings out the romantic in him.

[mzannthropy]

Sam Claflin and Adaptations (there's a lot more than you think!)

Articles and interviews be like: Sam, you have done so many book adaptations and then name at most three titles. Every fucking time. Luckily, I'm here to tell you about them! (Under the cut as it got long.)

Hunger Games Catching Fire and Mockingjay (books written by Suzanne Collins) - YA dystopia. The most obvious, of course. Sam plays Finnick Odair, the coolest character. (He's not dead, Katniss is lying.)

Daisy Jones and the Six (book written by Taylor Jenkins Reid) - story of a rise and fall of fictional band in the 1970s. Sam is Billy Dunne, the main male lead and a real rockstar!

My Cousin Rachel (book written by Daphne du Maurier) - Gothic thriller, 19th century. Sam is the narrator, Philip. This is my personal favourite.

Their Finest - adaptation of Their Finest Hour and a Half (book written by Lissa Evans) - Drama with bits of comedy. Set during WW2 in the film industry. Sam plays screenwriter Buckley, a member of a film crew working on a film about Dunkirk evacuation. Also features a side character who is gay and is alive at the end. More people should watch this film, imo.

Enola Holmes (book written by Nancy Springer) - kiddie Sherlockian pastiche. Sam plays Mycroft Holmes, at least that's his character's name, but it's not the usual Mycroft; his version is dumbed-down and cartoon-villainised so that the eponymous teenage girlboss can have her story.

Adrift - adaptation of Red Sky in the Mourning (book written by Tami Oldham Ashcroft) - survival drama of a seafaring couple lost at sea after a hurricane. Sam is the main character's love interest, Richard.

Two mini series from Sam's early career (that I haven't watched so can't give you any info):

Pillars of the Earth (book written by Ken Follett) - TV mini series set in 12th century about building of a cathedral. This was Sam's very first role.

Any Human Heart (book written by William Boyd) - TV mini series, chronicles a life of a writer in 20th century. Sam plays the youngest version of the main character, Logan.

Adaptations of plays - it counts, okay?

Journey's End (play written by RC Sherriff) - WW1 war film, but not a regular one (there's no battles). Covers a week in the trenches in March 1918. Sam plays Captain Stanhope, an officer at the edge of nervous breakdown. One of his best performances, if not the very best.

Riot Club (play written by Laura Wade) - contemporary film about a posh elite club at Oxford. Sam's character, Alistair, is a spoiled brat, Draco Malfoy-like. (Not the good fanon version, the bad canon version.) Btw, this is no Dead Poet's Society, no dark academia - the titular club is based on Bullingdon Club (of which Boris Johnson was member). They book a table at restaurants, trash them and then hand the owners a cheque to compensate. You see now why we have all these problems...

You can make an argument for:

Snow White and the Huntsman - (folk tale recorded by Brothers Grimm). It's a darker retelling. Sam plays William, the prince charming of the story.

Snow White and the Red Shoes, (as above) an animated film, he voices a character named Merlin. No idea what this is as I haven't seen it.

Okay now I'm stretching it

Pirates of the Caribbean On Stranger Tides - adapted from a Disneyland ride. BUT the ride itself was inspired by legendary tales of pirates, among others the books of Emilio Salgari. So, not that crazy. Might be the weakest of the franchise, but Sam's storyline--he plays the missionary Philip--is what saves it, his romance with the mermaid is just the cutest!

So that's it. Thank you for reading and I hope you check some of these out.

[mischievouslittlecreature]

Part 1: In the Heart of War

Fandom: Dunkirk

Pairing: Shivering Soldier x OC

Summary: There is only one survivor from the wreckage of a boat they come across. And he is very handsome.  

Word Count: 3,277

Notes: Warnings for depictions of war, brief suicide contemplation, and PTSD. Henry Wilson is the name for the Shivering Soldier created by the lovely people over @henry-wilson​.  

Previous Chapter • Series • Fic • Next Chapter

Chapter 2: Shivering

Perched next to Mr. Dawson on the deck of the Moonstone, Daisy peered through a pair of binoculars. Scanning the horizon, she pursed her lips at the emptiness awaiting them. There was no sign of men in the water, or the wreckage of any ships.

“See anything?” he asked. She shook her head, letting them drop into her lap.

“No.”

“We’re still a long way out. There may be more to see as we get closer,” he said. Daisy nodded, tugging the fabric of her sweater tighter around her. The salty scent of the sea was pleasant, even if she could do without the chill of the wind.

“Mr. Dawson!” George called out, eyes fixed on a plane gliding low over the water.

“One of ours, George!” the old man assured. The engine was loud as a clap of thunder as it soared over them. Daisy raised an eyebrow.

“Your son flew, right?” she asked, a tad cautiously. Working down at the docks, she’d heard stories about how old Mr. Dawson’s older son had died during the early parts of the war.

“Yes.”

“Is that how you know so much about planes?”

The old man chuckled. “More or less. That kid never shut up about them. Knew every possible thing about them.”

Daisy smiled at the wistfulness in his eyes. “It’s nice that you cared enough to listen.”

“I take it your parents never did the same for you?”

A bitter laugh left her lips. “Oh, mum cared, alright. Just…not in the way I hoped she would.”

To her relief he didn’t push the issue, just humming understandably, squinting to look out over the water. She pressed the binoculars back to her eyes. “Do you think we’ll see any dolphins?”

“Eh. It’s always possible. But all the explosions might have scared them away from the channel for the moment.”

She hoped that her disappointment wasn’t too obvious.

Arms crossing over her lap, she hunkered down against the wind, periodically scanning the horizon.

“There’s a ship heading towards us,” handing the binoculars off to Mr. Dawson, she shielded her eyes from the sun, squinting at the little blot in the distance. He looked into the binoculars momentarily then handed them back to her.

“One of ours,” he glanced at her as she wrapped her arms around herself, shoving her fingertips under her armpits to help warm them. “It’s probably warmer down below.”

“I’m fine.”

“George!” Mr. Dawson called out. “I think it’s time you put that first pot of tea on, lad!”

“Seriously, Mr. Dawson, I’m fine–”

“Relax. George brought enough tea for a literal army.”

George soon bounded from below, holding out a steaming cup to her. “Here’s your tea, Miss. Preston.”

“Just ‘Daisy’ is fine, kiddo. Thanks,” taking it with a thankful smile, she watched the boy rush back to Peter’s side. He reminded her a little of a puppy. Eager to please and wide-eyed, but not quite sure of his footing yet. Eyes fixed on the ship slowly growing closer and closer to them, she took a small sip of the tea to avoid burning her tongue. Free hand playing with the strap of binoculars, she leaned back on her elbows, head tilting up towards the sky. At least it was a decent day. Sailing around in the rain wasn’t exactly what she would consider to be a good time.

Boat bobbing along, she resumed scanning the waves.

“There’s some smoke in the distance. But I can’t tell what it is.”

“Probably a sinking ship. The fighters have been targeting the ones sent to evacuate men from the beach.”

“Do we need to worry about that?” she asked. Mr. Dawson shrugged.

“Probably not. They’ve got much bigger fish to fry than a little pleasure yacht.”

Humming, she took another sip of tea. Finished with his work for the moment, George meandered over to sit down beside her. Handing the binoculars to him so he could have a look, she tapped the heel of her shoe against the deck, trying not to appear too bored. Even though this whole adventure into literal war was turning out to be far less interesting than she had expected it to be.

Standing, she ventured below deck, eyeing the stacks of bright orange life jackets and wool blankets. Rubbing the material between her fingers, she pursed her lips, wondering if they really were going to be able to fit that many men onto the little boat. Refilling her tea, she returned to above deck just as they were passing the ship she’d spotted. Head tilting upwards, she could see that the deck was near overflowing with soldiers. They stood crowded around the railings, wrapped in blankets and looking at them with dead, despondent eyes. No one made a sound, not even raising a hand to wave, as they sailed past one another. A chill ran down her spine, glancing out towards the open space of water where they were headed. Towards where a plume of black smoke was reaching for the sky, mind trying to comprehend what was out there that had put that look in those soldier’s eyes.  

∗ ∗ ∗ 

The metal beneath him sang. A soft hum. Whether it came from the wind or the water, he couldn’t be sure. The sound was eerie and set his teeth on edge, but he would take it over the silence. Even though it wasn’t enough to drown out the memory of screams in his head.

The metal was hard and cold, but still better than the alternative of clinging to one of the bloated bodies of his companions floating in the water. He’d had to push one aside, when swimming towards the wreckage of the ship that was supposed to ferry them to freedom. The feeling of dead flesh beneath his fingers was enough to make him gag.

A piece of canvas clutched in his hands, he lifted it over his head, to protect from the icy gusts of wind. Still his teeth chattered in his skull, body trembling uncontrollably. He wasn’t sure if it was from the shock or the cold. Tears dried on his cheeks, body too exhausted to even bother with sobs anymore. Every once in a while, an explosion would thunder in the distance, or the engine of a plane would roar from the clouds, his body drawing in on itself in response. Breathing panicked and frantic.

What was he even doing? Sitting here, on the remains of a ship slowly lowering deeper and deeper into the sea with every passing moment. The ocean stretched out in every direction forever. Waves crashed around him, lapping against the ship, beckoning him. Quietly promising an icy embrace. All he’d need to do was lie facedown and float. The water would do the rest.

The idea was growing more and more tempting. After all, no one was coming to help him. He was all alone out here, with nothing but a few measly hours at most of borrowed time. One way or another, the ocean would claim him. Be that now or when the wreckage he clung to was finally dragged below.

Hands shaking, he wiped at his sniffling nose, and focused his eyes on the horizon.

∗ ∗ ∗ 

“There’s a wreckage,” she said, poking her head below deck to where Mr. Dawson and the boys were rummaging about, making more tea. “There’s the wreckage of a ship. Straight ahead.”

Mr. Dawson followed her back outside. She pressed her binoculars to her eyes, squinting at the remains of the vessel, barely sticking up out of the water. And the little figure perched on top of it.

“See any survivors?” he asked, already beginning to adjust the boat’s course.

“Just one.”

“Alright. We’ll pick him up.”

They neared the wreckage cautiously so as to avoid accidentally damaging the Moonstone. Peter came rushing onto deck to see what was going on, heading below for a moment and returning with a rope and George in tow. The figure seated on top of the wreckage didn’t seem to even acknowledge them, huddling with a blanket of some kind covering most of his face, likely as protection from the wind.

“Hey! Hey! Can you swim it?” Peter called. The soldier didn’t respond. Didn’t even make any movement or indication that he had heard them at all. Daisy wasn’t sure if he was aware that they were there. “Dad, can you get closer?”

“Can’t risk it!”

George mumbled something to Peter, who fumbled with the rope he’d brought. “Hang on,” he tossed the rope into the water. There was a long beat where no one moved, and then, slowly, the soldier rose to stand unsteadily, clamoring to the edge of the wreckage. Peter drew the rope in and tossed it again, as close to the soldier as he could get it. The soldier flung aside his blanket, and dove cleanly headfirst into the water, clutching tightly to the rope. Daisy handed the binoculars to Mr. Dawson, rushing forward to help the two boys haul the man out of the waves and onto the deck. Water dripped copiously from his soaked clothes, his hand clinging to Peter so tightly he almost dragged the boy down with him, sitting heavily in the corner of the deck. His shoulders scrunched in on themselves, and when Daisy took a cautious step forward, to examine him for any injuries, she could see that he was shivering violently.

“Get him a blanket, George,” she said softly. The boy nodded, ducking away and returning a moment later with one of the thick, dark blue wool blankets they had stashed down below. He tucked it carefully around the soldier’s shoulders. The man grabbed onto the blanket, wrapping himself in it so tightly it was like he was hoping to disappear. He wouldn’t look up at them. Mr. Dawson bent down, examining the soldier with worried eyes.

“What’s your name?”

There came no response. The soldier’s eyes were unfocused, staring at a space on the deck. A breeze ruffled the dark, dripping fringe obscuring most of his face, and Daisy caught a glimpse of a sharp jawline and a shock of blue eyes. There was a small cut on his nose, but it didn’t look so serious that she felt the need to treat it immediately. Mr. Dawson pulled away from the soldier, steering the boat quickly away from the wreckage. Peter was eying him nervously. Daisy couldn’t blame him. It was unnerving even for her, to see a man so traumatized he couldn’t even speak.     

“Okay, boys, give him some space, yeah?” she said, shooing George and Peter away. What the man needed at the moment was to feel that he was safe. That was hard to do with a group of people gawking at you. “Let’s go finish making that tea,” she mumbled, suddenly very mindful not to speak too loud, for fear of disturbing or frightening the man further. With careful hands, she guided the boys below deck, and away from the shivering soldier. 

∗ ∗ ∗ 

It had been almost an hour, and the soldier had barely moved. Instead he remained curled in on himself, burrowed so deeply in his blanket she could barely see his face. They’d all tried to keep their distance from him, to give him some space to recover from whatever had so frightened him. But Daisy was beginning to think that avoiding him wasn’t the best approach. After all, so much time had passed since they’d hauled him aboard, and he had yet to say a single word. And he was still trembling.  

“Do you want to come below? It’s much warmer,” George offered to the soldier, approaching with a mug of tea held out. But he moved in on the soldier too quickly, too loudly and suddenly. Before Daisy could open her mouth to warn him to back off a bit, he was hovering in close to him. “It’s out of the wind. Here you go,” he thrust the mug towards him, and the soldier flailed in panic at the sudden movement, knocking the tea from George’s hand. The boy jerked back with a surprised gasp. In response the soldier clutched his blanket more tightly around him, blinking. Still staring at nothing.

“Leave him be, George,” Mr. Dawson said. Daisy clutched the railing to help keep her balance as she approached them, patting George gently on the shoulder as she passed. “He feels safer on deck. You would too if you’d been bombed.”

“U-boat,” they all jerked, heads snapping around at the first words to pass the soldier’s lips. “It was a U-boat,” he pulled the blanket all the way up to his chin, as if the mere idea of one was too horrible to imagine.

“Get him some more tea, George,” Peter jumped down with a bundle of rope clutched in one hand. George bustled about, collecting the spilled mug and heading back below deck. Daisy kept her eyes glued to the soldier, his head turning to look out anxiously at the ocean around them.  

With everyone else busy she was starting to feel a little useless. Still eying the soldier curiously, she began to approach cautiously, sitting down slowly across from him. His eyes darted up to stare at her, widening slightly, as if he had just noticed her presence on the boat for the first time. 

“I’m Daisy,” she said, with a small smile. Eyes darting around, he lowered the blanket ever so slightly.

“Henry,” he croaked out finally.

“Henry,” she repeated, eyes that were bluer than the ocean blinking back at her. “Would it be okay if I took a look at those cuts on your face?”

His hand flew to the small gashes on his nose and left cheek. Expression unreadable for a moment, he examined her. Probably assessing the level of threat that she posed. Then he nodded. Smiling, she went to retrieve the first aid kit tucked away in one of the drawers, returning to sit beside Henry, pouring some disinfectant onto a rag.

“This might sting,” she warned, cupping his chin lightly and dabbing at the cuts. He flinched slightly, but didn’t make any other indication of complaint. His skin was clammy under her touch. Biting her lip, she did her best to ignore the sculpted sharpness of his features. The fullness of his lips. “Well, you won’t need stitches,” she noted. “I doubt that they’ll even scar.”

Henry just nodded. “You’ll get to keep that pretty face intact,” she was tempted to say, but figured that it wasn’t exactly the most appropriate time to flirt. No matter how pretty he looked with his big blue eyes and dark hair falling over his forehead.

“I’ll go check on your tea,” she said, patting his knee and standing. 

“Thank you,” Henry mumbled. Glancing over her shoulder, she found that he wasn’t looking at her, gaze instead fixed upon a spot on the deck again. A sad smile twitched at her lips. This poor, poor man.

“Of course.” 

∗ ∗ ∗ 

Henry seemed to be doing a little better. He’d taken some tea from George, and every once in a while Mr. Dawson was able to pull an answer to a question from him. His shivering had abated enough that he was able to stand, walking around cautiously on the deck, hair and clothing mostly dry. Daisy watched as he scratched at his neck with his left hand, the golden ring encircling his finger glinting in the sun.

It was too bad. He really was very handsome.

But, well. She was used to it. Most of the men her age were already married off. It wasn’t anything to sulk about. It wasn’t like she’d already been captivated by his light blue eyes, or noticed the lean muscles in his chest and shoulders beneath his uniform.

Okay, fine. She was sulking a little.

George gently nudged a fresh cup of tea into her hands, earning himself a grateful smile, before he shuffled forward to offer to refill Henry’s cup for him. The soldier was glancing around anxiously, looking more than a little lost as he ambled around the small deck before sitting back down in his spot in the corner.

“Don’t worry,” she took a small sip of her tea. “We’ll get you home and to your wife in no time at all.”

Henry’s head snapped around to her. “Beg pardon?”

She tilted her head. “What?” her brows furrowed, confused as to what she’d said wrong. 

“I don’t have a wife.”

Her eyebrows rose, standing to walk over and sit next to him. “No?” setting her cup down on the deck, she took his left hand in hers, raising it so that the gold metal gleamed, smile teasing. “What’s this, then?”

He looked at the ring on his finger as though he’d just remember it was there. Then laughed awkwardly, shaking his head.

“It’s uh…my dad’s.”

“Alright, now I’m very confused.”

“He died a couple years ago. When I was shipped off, my mum made me take it with me. For good luck, I guess,” he let out a humorless sigh. “I used to keep it on a chain around my neck, but I was always worried about the chain breaking, and losing it…and that’s the only finger it fits on. So…” he shrugged.

Daisy leaned back, narrowing her eyes at him playfully. “Henry, are you having a laugh?” she asked suspiciously. It wouldn’t be the first time she’d been made to feel like a fool after a man spun a story to her about not having a wife only for her to find out later that he very much did.

“No!” he pulled the ring off his finger. “Here. See the engravement inside it?” holding it up so she could see, the names Dorothy & Frank were scrawled in swirling letters, complete with a date. “My name’s not Frank,” he said, tapping the identity tags around his neck.

“Alright, alright. I believe you,” she smiled. Henry slipped the ring back onto his finger. Resting his cheek on his palm, he eyed her carefully. “What about you?”

“Hm?”

“You have someone back home worrying about you?”

“Oh. No,” she let out an awkward laugh.

“I find that hard to believe. A pretty woman like you…” he broke eye contact, blushing furiously. A smile pulled on her lips. Goddamn, he was cute. 

“I spent most of my twenties and thirties traveling. It’s hard to find someone to settle down with when you’re constantly moving from one town to another.”

“Where did you travel to?”

“Spent a few years in Ireland and then Scotland. A couple more in northern England. I only just recently worked my way down to the south. I only moved to Weymouth a little while ago.”

“You’re from Wales, aren’t you?”

“What gave me away?” she laughed, in her very obvious Welsh accent. “I’m from the Newport area.”

“I went there on holiday with my parents once. It’s nice.”

“Where are you from?”

“Oh it’s um…it’s a tiny little rural village. Between London and Dover. You’d be hard pressed to find it on a map,” he said with an awkward chuckle.

“Small towns were always my favorite. They always feel so intimate and cozy.”

There was a sudden boom in the distance, and Henry jumped, scrambling at the material of the blanket still wrapped around him, eyes filling with terror. Daisy reached out a hand to touch his shoulder, rubbing circles into the tense muscles there.

“Look at me,” those big frightened eyes darted to hers. “It’s going to be okay.”

Very, very slowly, he nodded.   

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[lordbettany]

Hey! I'm kind of a new Aneurin fan...I haven't watched all of his stuff yet, only a few things, but he's already re-awakened the tragic emo whump fic writer inside me :'D. Sorry if this is an odd question, but do you know if he has any scenes involving injury stuff? The closest I've seen is Citadel where he gets attacked and wakes up in hospital, and Dunkirk where...well...(sheds a tear for Gibson). I'm basically looking for scenes I can use as inspiration for whump. (asking anonymously in case this question is weird T_T)

Thank you for your question! I love watching Aneurin cry 😅 it's those huge pug eyes of his.. and don't worry, this is Tumblr. Everything is weird here 🙃🙃

Well.. I don't think he has much of those scenes, but I'll try to list some.

A welsh soap opera about a bunch of doctors called Casualty prt 2 - prt 3 - prt 4

There's a short film from his student times titled In Deep (2008) .

Ironclad (2011) - he is a wee virgin squire here who joins to his first battle.

The White Queen (2013) - Richard's death scene in the very last episode 😭 (get ready for a brand new trauma)

Mary Queen of Scots (2013) - idk if it counts, but Lord Darnley gets sick and develops pretty nasty oozing scars on his face.

A very minor hand injury in Dead in a Week or Your Money Back (2018)

Barkskins (2020) - There are a few scenes where he fights and gets injured/bloody

His final scene in The Catch (2023) might count bc he gets stabbed

And he gets beaten up a few times in 1899 (2022)

[reflections-in-a-critical-eye]

Have you watched any movie (s) recently and thought it didn't deserve the hype it got?

It's a random question. Just curious.

I've been disappointed like that a few times.

Yes, Oppenheimer 😆

I finally dragged myself to watch it, but only to see Cillian's performance so I'm more in the loop when the Oscars are coming.

It's not a bad movie, but damn is it overhyped. But I also can't stand Christopher Nolan. I think his only good film was Memento. The rest have just been slightly elevated Hollywood productions with appropriate budgets. All his campaign last summer about the technology and how they shot that bomb scene and Nolan basically painting himself as a genius did nothing for me.

I think he used hightened extra diegetic sound too much that it became a crutch. A way to make the scenes more intense to a point in which it would be easy to make a parody out of it. (Just like he did in Dunkirk). You as an audience apparently need to be aware all the time that what is happening is something epic, extraordinary and you need that drilled into your brain with every scene. Give me a break, Nolan

I don't believe he brings anything to the table in terms of form with his filmmaking. Yeah, he knows how to make use of technology, but he has nothing on the language of cinema, not how Scorsese does (I'm mentioning it because both have films now in the award circuit and both directors are in general appreciated for their filmography, especially by the film bros - ugh).

Nolan is also incapable of even imagining that a female character might be relevant on her own and in Oppenheimer he proved that once again.

[bettsfic]

Ahhh you watch hotd? I would love to hear a little Betts Review™ favorite characters/ships any thoughts like that!!

i like hotd the way i think non-fanpeople interact with media. i enjoy it a lot, i watch it every week, i don't think about it at all when it's not directly in front of me. that's not a bad thing. it's just that hotd is almost too smooth for me to grasp onto. there's a kind of technical acuity to it that i admire a lot but that doesn't engender any feelings beyond being entertained.

if there were maybe an ounce more affection between any two characters i might be inspired to have a ship, but otherwise there's just no love anywhere. like Alicent and Criston would usually be catnip for me, but there's just too much angst, and Criston's internal turmoil of loyalty is just a step to the left of my interests. he has loyalty devoid of devotion, if that makes sense. to me it seems like he only fucks Alicent, he doesn't love her. but i guess that's up to interpretation. if he's ever put in a position where he has to choose between Alicent and his Hand duties, and he chooses Alicent, i'll become way more invested. i need less Hand, more breadcrumbs of femdom/guard dog.

i remember i liked him a lot more last season but i can't remember why. i had a fic idea at some point for an Alicent/Criston modern AU. surely i have notes about it somewhere. but this season hasn't inspired me to revisit that idea.

Aemond is really growing on me, particularly his relationship with uh, that one lady whose name i don't remember. if he starts showing evidence of goodness or redemption, or if his relationship with the lady starts driving his actions rather than spite and ambition, i could see myself really vibing with him. but a lot of this show is wrapped up in spite and ambition and greed and power, and those things are fun to watch but don't really make me feel anything.

i also like Aegon a lot, but mostly because he's being meow meow'd in the plot and i recently rewatched Dunkirk where i like that actor's character far more, and can kind of plant the latter onto the former to trick myself into caring more about him. (and that little "mummy." there's promise there.)

i used to like Daemon and Rhaenyra but the second a character chooses themselves and their individual desires over someone they love, i completely lose interest. Daemon wants the throne. i can't empathize with that kind of drive for power and so i just can't make myself care.

but! i do like Rhaenyra. her desire for the throne is a little more interesting to me because she's seeking peace and not power. it's a real shame that they divided Rhaenyra and Alicent because theirs is the most interesting relationship to me and they also have great chemistry. (spoilers ahead) i think the most engaged i've been all season is their scene together. if Rhaenyra and Alicent ever start working together against a common enemy, and they do it willingly, without a mass of angst, or at least move toward repairing their relationship, i'll be insane about that.

honest to god my favorite thing about the show is that 10-minute breakdown at the end of every episode. i'm very fascinated by the behind-the-scenes stuff because a lot of very smart and talented people are making it and i think there's a lot to be learned there. also i almost always prefer the story about the story than the story itself. i'm saving the behind the scenes series for after the season is over.

tl;dr there's a lot of potential for me to become fannishly interested if some of the things that are being set up come to fruition. if someone has a really juicy modern AU rec for me with any of my go-to relationship dynamics (submissive guard dogs, mommy issues, i'm trying to think of a third thing but that pretty much covers it), i'm all ears.

[runnning-outof-time]

Who are your Top 3 Cillian characters & how do you think they'd interact (they're in a safe, neutral territory)?

Thanks so much for sending this in!! 🥰 I’ve already told you, but seeing this in my inbox put the biggest smile on my face! - I rarely get anything when I reblog posts saying people can chat with me, so I really appreciate it! 🧡

The two that I immediately thought of were Tommy Shelby (obviously) and Shivering Soldier from Dunkirk (which was the first CM movie I watched - before I even really knew who he was) … I think that they’d definitely be able to bond over the trauma they experienced while serving…as well as the trauma they have as a result of what they went through/saw. Or they might just sit in a common silence because I’m not sure if they’d know what to say to each other.

I had a tough time choosing a 3rd character. He’s been in so many films and his roles were so diverse that I just can’t narrow it down!! 😩😩

But I guess if I had to choose one today, it’d probably be Tom Buckley from Red Lights (thank you for reminding me of him in your message haha!) … although I do have to say that the film was rather dry and slow paced in parts, I really enjoyed his character and the twist that came into play at the end.

As far as how he’d interact with the other two…I’m not sure. They’re kind of night and day as far as backgrounds go. I think that Tommy would appreciate Tom’s intelligence, and the Shivering Soldier might relate to the struggles that Tom went through throughout the duration of the film haha.

Other honorable mentions of my fav CM characters are (and I’m sure I’m forgetting some): Davin in Sunburn (I’m a sucker for him in this!! He’d be wayyy too cocky for the 3 I mentioned above lol) , Damien in The Wind That Shakes the Barley (I think he’d be able to relate to some similar struggles of the first 2) , Neil in Watching the Detectives (he’s soooo different than the 3 I chose, but I loved seeing him in a comedy) , William Killick in The Edge of Love (again with the trauma — this character deserved better) , Matthew Joy in In the Heart of the Sea (a lot of his characters experience trauma, don’t they) , Chris in Free Fire (this one was just an all around fun movie) … I think I’ll stop there because this paragraph has gotten long enough — just know that there’s like several other characters that he’s played that I absolutely love!

Thanks again for sending this in!! ☺️

[duckietiewritestoo]

In the Bleak Midwinter (Various Cillian Murphy Characters One Shots)

Yes, hi. Welcome. Did I make a one shot book dedicated to the characters Cillian Murphy has played? (MASTERLIST HERE)

Yes.

Why?

I have no clue. Maybe because I love him so much. I don't know.

So let's get started.

RULES:

No 18+ please! NO SPICE EITHER. This all makes me uncomfortable. 

You can request for any character. I haven't seen all his movies yet so the characters might not be written just like they really are. But that doesn't mean I won't look up the character.

I won't do the actual Cillian. This again makes me uncomfortable. This is DEDICATED to his characters, not him.

I'll try to do OCs but that's usually not my style. I mostly do x readers. But don't let that stop you.

INFO

I'm gonna say it now and I'm gonna say it again like I do in every one shot book I create: READER IS GENDER NEUTRAL, unless specified.  I do angst and fluff (NO SMUT). 

I'm willing to do all his characters. EVEN though I've only seen few of his films and shows. But here's the ones I've seen:

Batman Begins (Cillian as Jonathan Crane is my favorite)

Red Eye (I fell asleep halfway, I don't remember much)

Inception (we need more Robert Fischer fics out there)

Dunkirk (I might be hesitant about writing for his character in that film, only because he wasn't given a proper name)

Breakfast on Pluto (I saw a photo and nearly died from his beauty in that film)

In the Heart of the Sea (I call it Tale of a Whale even though the whale had little screen time. I also cried in this)

Tron Legacy (He was only in it for a brief moment. GO LOOK IT UP, I BET YOU DIDN'T KNOW HE WAS IN THAT!)

The ones I know too much (It means I've seen clips of it):

Peaky Blinders (I've seen a few clips on YouTube)

Oppenheimer (I MIGHT NOT WRITE FOR THIS GUY)

28 Days Later (Does this take place in February?)

Watching the Detectives (I don't know why, but I have a grudge against Neil....I think....)

In Time (All I know his that his name is Raymond and he deserved better)

The ones I've heard of but haven't seen:

Red Lights (I thought it was the sequel to Red Eye)

On the Edge (I HAVE NO CLUE WHAT THIS IS ABOUT)

Anthropoid (I heard he smoked a lot in this film)

Peacock (From Patricia to Emma. He looks pretty with brown eyes)

A Quiet Place 2 (I call him Hobo Cillian in that)

If there's any film or show I missed out on, let me know. I'll write for that character. 

[frickinsleepdeprived]

What kind of movie genres do you think the hashiras would like? Also, if they had to pick a favorite horror movie, what would each of their's be?

heheheheheheeeeee say less let's fuckin gooooo-

...

Muichiro:

He's still a kid, but at the same time he's still very mature for his age

Therefore, regardless if he's a hashira or not, I think he'd get a knack out of animated movies, specifically either Pixar or even ghibli movies

I mean come on, he became a hashira at such a young age

Let the kid have his creature comforts

As for his favorite horror movie, like in my previous post, he leans towards the Japanese version of "The Ring"

...

Mitsuri:

Though the love hashira, she doesn't really get a kick out of traditional hallmark movies especially the Christmas ones

With that said though, I don't doubt that because of her past and romanticizing the concept of love she'd be super into romantic comedies, or possibly even dramatic comedies.

She just likes having a good laugh every once in a while. Especially if she's feeling lonely or whatever else she might be feeling

Yo girl gotta have some kind of outlet one way or another

As for horror movies, I think she'd really like the "scary movie" series, specifically the first one that mocks the movie "Scream"

...

Obanai:

He's definitely a more serious type, that's for sure

I mean look at him, he's comically condescending at best

But he can obviously have his serious moments

And although he'll watch whatever Mitsuri likes, because that's the only girl he tolerates in general. I have a feeling he really likes any kind of action comedy. So movies like "Chips", "Game Night", and "Cocaine Bear" are just a few of his favorites.

Mitsuri actually suggested the genre to him, saying that he needed to "lighten up and live a bit"

So he gave them a watch and he just had a blast, so did his snake friend

As for his favorite horror movie, anything having to do with animals is definitely his go to. However he takes a particular liking to the movie "Anaconda"

...

Gyomei:

I can't see him being into anything other than historical fiction when it comes to movies. Or movies based off of history, I headcanon that he has a knack for learning as much as he can

Movies like "Dunkirk", "Schindler's List", "Saving Private Ryan", and "All Quiet on the Western Front" are a few of his favorites. (Also I highly recommend checking out Schindler's List it's really good!)

Due to the fact that he's blind, I feel like he'd also like the fact that because the movies have such great audio quality (most of the time) he'd be even more immersed into it just by listening.

As for his favorite horror movie, it would definitely have to be some kind of religious horror movie like "The Nun"

...

Sanemi:

Mans may be traumatized from when he was a kid but that won't stop him from enjoying a good action movie

"Extraction", "The Gray Man", "Gemini Man", and "Six Underground" happen to be a few of his favorites

And yes I know it's a little cliche for a hashira, but you have to admit this dude wants to fight anything and everything half the time (albeit it's not his fault given what he's been through)

At least this gives him a healthy outlet just to at least watch people be eradicated in a way lol

As for his favorite horror movie, he likes the movie "Saw", the suspense gets him going and completely engaged in it

...

Shinobu:

Ol' girl definitely is a sucker for a feel good comedy

"Crazy Rich Asians", "The Devil Wears Prada", "A Dog's Purpose", and "Lala Land" happen to be a few of her favorites

Shinobu's job doesn't leave very much room for rejoicing half the time, especially when the corps loses someone so suddenly

So these types of movies give her a sense of hope, along with a good laugh here and there

As for her favorite horror movie, and idk if this is considered horror more than say a slasher film, but I headcanon she'd like "The Purge"

If she really wanted to, given her background, she'd eradicate everyone and everything in sight. But why do that when you can watch a movie about it? lol

...

Giyuu:

Mans has also been through some shit, but like Sanemi, it won't stop him from watching a good movie, specifically psychological thrillers

Movies, as stated before, like "The Prodigy", "Silence of the Lambs", and "Us" are a few of his favorites

He just likes the thrill of having to guess what comes next, it keeps his mind busy and focused on something other than his past

As for an actual horror movie, I think he'd like the movie "Annabelle: Creation" since Rengoku has talked his ear off about it so much that he gave in, watched it, and actually likes it lol

...

Rengoku:

Fire man loves a good movie about witchcraft

Yes witchcraft but nothing malicious

"Practical Magic", "Coven", and "Bewitched" happen to be some of his favorites

He has no real reason to like them, but he just likes how they're portrayed and how it proves that magic could basically be anywhere

He's also just a huge kid at heart so can ya blame him? Lol

As far as horror movies, he really likes "Childsplay", he just finds it fascinating how real life objects like dolls and even the most basic of items can be extremely haunted

...

Tengen:

Mans has three wives. So naturally rather than a singular movie, unless its like three hours long, he'd enjoy a movie series

He likes Marvel and DC movies, as well as the "Fast and Furious" series, "Lord of the RIngs" series, the "Narnia" series

Basically name any movie that has multiple sequels, he likes it lol

As far as an actual horror movie, he really likes "The Exorcist", maybe even going as far as "Evil Dead"

He likes something that will give him and his wives a good scare

......

Okayyyyyy that's that lol that took me way longer than I had anticipated. Who knew that this would wrack my brain to oblivion lmaooo. Regardless I hope you enjoy! Let me know what you want to see next!

[alarrytale]

Hello Marte! So to draw attention away for a bit from what´s currently happening...what´s your opinion on DWD and MP? I know that like last week you mentioned that H can´t act and that´s why he was so bad at DWD while in MP he didn´t really act and it was much like being himself. Can you please tell me more about this because I´m curious about your opinion. And what about Dunkirk which basically started his acting career out of nowhere?

My opinions are that I kinda take MP as a document rather than film because it fits H´s life like crazy and in my theory he went for this role as a huge signal for everyone - to show everyone who he really is (while people still are blind and deaf to hear and see him). And also I find it very obvious now when I found out he was probably reading the book (there´s a photo of him where he has the book in his coat pocket) back in like Feb 2020 when still noone expected what will come next month and how his tour planned for that year will be postponed.

And DWD? Oh it´s just weird seeing him playing heterosexual husband but that´s probably as you mentioned - because he can´t act enough to make people at least believe his role.

Hi, anon!

Yes, i don't think harry can act. At all. It might just be a me problem. But when you've spent years and years analysing his every micro expression, and knows all his tells, nervous habits, when he's lying or playing straight, seeing him act just falls flat for me. He's going through the motions but there are no real emotions to tap into for him to be able to express them in a way that translates to film. Seeing him act in scenes with emma, who's great at acting, just makes harry's lack of skills painfully evident. It makes you wonder why he was cast in the first place (i know why...). He's also taking the opportunity away from other more skilled actors. I feel from the dunkirk interviews that his other castmates felt some resentment towards him for that reason. I don't think they got along very well. I do agree with you when it comes to his motivation for taking the role in mp.

I've only seen mp, i haven't seen dwd or dunkirk. Too much second hand embarrasment there. Mp was mostly okay, but some scenes he's just not skilled enough to handle. It was overplayed, his emotional reaction to his costars portrayed emotions was unproportional. I cringed watching those scenes. I hope he's got acting out of his system now and realised that he's better suited to other things. He's not got a talent for acting imo.

[denimbex1986]

'Ask four random people to name their favorite Christopher Nolan film and you might get four different answers. Ask the four main stars of Nolan's new movie Oppenheimer...that question and that's definitely the case, as EW discovers when Cillian Murphy, Emily Blunt, Matt Damon, and Robert Downey Jr. share their take on his filmography (even Nolan himself offers a suggestion) during our latest Around the Table conversation.

"I love Dunkirk," says Blunt. "I've seen that, like, 20 times."

"My wife and I watched The Prestige, I think, four days in a row when it came out," says Damon. "But I love Inception as well. That's kind of an impossible question. It's like saying, what's your favorite Hitchcock movie?"

"You're in all of them," Blunt says to Murphy, whose professional relationship with Nolan dates back to 2005's Batman Begins in which the actor played the role of Dr. Jonathan Crane.

"No, I'm not," the actor politely corrects. "I remember seeing Interstellar in IMAX, on my own. I just remember coming out in a terrible state. It was so emotional."

"Did no one else want to watch it with you?" jokes Blunt.

"I love escaping from the house," says Murphy. "My kids were little. But it's so emotional, that movie, that always gets me every time."

"I can't answer the question but I want to make the case for Dunkirk," says Nolan, who cast Murphy in the film as the survivor of a U-boat attack named in the credits as "Shivering soldier." "When I sent Cillian the script, he wasn't entirely enthusiastic about playing the character. You actually called me up and went like, 'Sure, I'll do it because I want to work with you, but couldn't I be a Spitfire pilot instead?' And I said 'No, I need you out on that boat.' So I convinced you, and then you're out on the boat, and you're diving in the water off the wreck, and feeling more and more miserable about it all. The character doesn't have a name, all that. But cut to a couple years later, I went to buy the box set of Peaky Blinders and on the back it said: Cillian 'Dunkirk' Murphy. I was like, job done!"

It's a good answer. But Downey has an arguably better one.

"Many people will say this is your greatest film and a culmination of aspects of every film you've ever done," says the actor to Nolan. "So it's almost like Good Will Hunting: You've made this equation where you're now at the end of the chalkboard, and what the heck would you do next? But we believe in you, sir. So my favorite film of yours is whatever the heck you do after this, because you'd better come up with something amazing."

Oppenheimer stars Murphy as theoretical physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer, the so-called "father of the atomic bomb." Blunt plays Oppenheimer's wife Kitty; Damon portrays General Leslie Groves, the man responsible for putting Oppenheimer in charge of the Manhattan Project; and Downey is Atomic Energy Commission chairman Lewis Strauss.'

[sayitaliano]

6, 8, and 13 for the langblr ask game!

6. Favorite movie in your target language - [IT: atm still Freaks Out] - ENG: I have re-watched Dunkirk in English so I am gonna mention that, but occasionally I do watch movies in English. - FR: In French (except Dunkirk) I only watched a short on Dailymotion but I don't remember the name. I am gonna mention Jeux d'Enfants, and Pierrot Le Fou (prob my real fav despite I haven't watched it all in French) - ESP, RUS I haven't watched entire movies in those languages yet. In Spanish I might mention Coco (watched bits of it in Spanish) and Viky Cristina Barcelona. - KOR: I only watched a couple of random dramas, one is "Soundtrack #1" (they were on DIsney+ so I thought I could take a look), but I want to watch a movie too.

8. Favorite word in your target language - [IT: smargiasso = braggart; such a cool "fat" word] - ENG: I'm loving this guy's videos about English words, and I'm gonna mention "improve" only cause for a few years I totally forgot its Italian equivalent and almost used while speaking my native language. - FR: "coquelicot" = poppy; it's one of my favs I think (but I keep having in my mind my French teacher repeating me "Vite, vite, Elisa!" while, on a school trip in Montecarlo, I was taking pictures and we had to move) - ESP: "también" = also and "todavía" = anyway; I kept using both randomly for a while when I first started learning Spanish - RUS: Сердце = growing a heart. What should I add? Almost wanted to tattoo it on my wrist. - KOR: 우유 = milk. There are a few words all made in such a way and it's funny to try to remember them all (and their sounds) - Honorable mention for the first word I learned in Bulgarian: "Моля" (= please, welcome)

13. Pen or pencil I generally take notes in pen and I found out I like blue pen more. I add brief translations or add-ons in pencil at times, but not always.

Grazieee!!

[mischievouslittlecreature]

In the Heart of War

Chapter 2: Shivering 

Fandom: Dunkirk

Pairing: Shivering Soldier x OC

Summary: There is only one survivor from the wreckage of a boat they come across. And he is very handsome.  

Series: Part 1 of Cold Waters & Sunlit Gardens    

Word Count: 3,269

Notes: Warnings for mention of war, death, brief suicide contemplation, and PTSD. Henry Wilson is the name for the Shivering Soldier created by the lovely people over @henry-wilson​.  

Main Masterlist • In the Heart of War

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Perched next to Mr. Dawson on the deck of the Moonstone, Daisy peered through a pair of binoculars. Scanning the horizon, she pursed her lips at the emptiness awaiting them. There was no sign of men in the water, or the wreckage of any ships.

“See anything?” he asked. She shook her head, letting them drop into her lap.

“No.”

“We’re still a long way out. There may be more to see as we get closer,” he said. Daisy nodded, tugging the fabric of her sweater tighter around her. The salty scent of the sea was pleasant, even if she could do without the chill of the wind.

“Mr. Dawson!” George called out, eyes fixed on a plane gliding low over the water.

“One of ours, George!” the old man assured. The engine was loud as a clap of thunder as it soared over them. Daisy raised an eyebrow.

“Your son flew, right?” she asked, a tad cautiously. Working down at the docks, she’d heard stories about how old Mr. Dawson’s older son had died during the early parts of the war.

“Yes.”

“Is that how you know so much about planes?”

The old man chuckled. “More or less. That kid never shut up about them. Knew every possible thing about them.”

Daisy smiled at the wistfulness in his eyes. “It’s nice that you cared enough to listen.”

“I take it your parents never did the same for you?”

A bitter laugh left her lips. “Oh, mum cared, alright. Just…not in the way I hoped she would.”

To her relief he didn’t push the issue, just humming understandably, squinting to look out over the water. She pressed the binoculars back to her eyes. “Do you think we’ll see any dolphins?”

“Eh. It’s always possible. But all the explosions might have scared them away from the channel for the moment.”

She hoped that her disappointment wasn’t too obvious.

Arms crossing over her lap, she hunkered down against the wind, periodically scanning the horizon.

“There’s a ship heading towards us,” handing the binoculars off to Mr. Dawson, she shielded her eyes from the sun, squinting at the little blot in the distance. He looked into the binoculars momentarily then handed them back to her.

“One of ours,” he glanced at her as she wrapped her arms around herself, shoving her fingertips under her armpits to help warm them. “It’s probably warmer down below.”

“I’m fine.”

“George!” Mr. Dawson called out. “I think it’s time you put that first pot of tea on, lad!”

“Seriously, Mr. Dawson, I’m fine–”

“Relax. George brought enough tea for a literal army.”

George soon bounded from below, holding out a steaming cup to her. “Here’s your tea, Miss. Preston.”

“Just ‘Daisy’ is fine, kiddo. Thanks,” taking it with a thankful smile, she watched the boy rush back to Peter’s side. He reminded her a little of a puppy. Eager to please and wide-eyed, but not quite sure of his footing yet. Eyes fixed on the ship slowly growing closer and closer to them, she took a small sip of the tea to avoid burning her tongue. Free hand playing with the strap of binoculars, she leaned back on her elbows, head tilting up towards the sky. At least it was a decent day. Sailing around in the rain wasn’t exactly what she would consider to be a good time.

Boat bobbing along, she resumed scanning the waves.

“There’s some smoke in the distance. But I can’t tell what it is.”

“Probably a sinking ship. The fighters have been targeting the ones sent to evacuate men from the beach.”

“Do we need to worry about that?” she asked. Mr. Dawson shrugged.

“Probably not. They’ve got much bigger fish to fry than a little pleasure yacht.”

Humming, she took another sip of tea. Finished with his work for the moment, George meandered over to sit down beside her. Handing the binoculars to him so he could have a look, she tapped the heel of her shoe against the deck, trying not to appear too bored. Even though this whole adventure into literal war was turning out to be far less interesting than she had expected it to be.

Standing, she ventured below deck, eyeing the stacks of bright orange life jackets and wool blankets. Rubbing the material between her fingers, she pursed her lips, wondering if they really were going to be able to fit that many men onto the little boat. Refilling her tea, she returned to above deck just as they were passing the ship she’d spotted. Head tilting upwards, she could see that the deck was near overflowing with soldiers. They stood crowded around the railings, wrapped in blankets and looking at them with dead, despondent eyes. No one made a sound, not even raising a hand to wave, as they sailed past one another. A chill ran down her spine, glancing out towards the open space of water where they were headed. Towards where a plume of black smoke was reaching for the sky, mind trying to comprehend what was out there that had put that look in those soldier’s eyes.  

The metal beneath him sang. A soft hum. Whether it came from the wind or the water, he couldn’t be sure. The sound was eerie and set his teeth on edge, but he would take it over the silence. Even though it wasn’t enough to drown out the memory of screams in his head.

The metal was hard and cold, but still better than the alternative of clinging to one of the bloated bodies of his companions floating in the water. He’d had to push one aside, when swimming towards the wreckage of the ship that was supposed to ferry them to freedom. The feeling of dead flesh beneath his fingers was enough to make him gag.

A piece of canvas clutched in his hands, he lifted it over his head, to protect from the icy gusts of wind. Still his teeth chattered in his skull, body trembling uncontrollably. He wasn’t sure if it was from the shock or the cold. Tears dried on his cheeks, body too exhausted to even bother with sobs anymore. Every once in a while, an explosion would thunder in the distance, or the engine of a plane would roar from the clouds, his body drawing in on itself in response. Breathing panicked and frantic.

What was he even doing? Sitting here, on the remains of a ship slowly lowering deeper and deeper into the sea with every passing moment. The ocean stretched out in every direction forever. Waves crashed around him, lapping against the ship, beckoning him. Quietly promising an icy embrace. All he’d need to do was lie facedown and float. The water would do the rest.

The idea was growing more and more tempting. After all, no one was coming to help him. He was all alone out here, with nothing but a few measly hours at most of borrowed time. One way or another, the ocean would claim him. Be that now or when the wreckage he clung to was finally dragged below.

Hands shaking, he wiped at his sniffling nose, and focused his eyes on the horizon.

“There’s a wreckage,” she said, poking her head below deck to where Mr. Dawson and the boys were rummaging about, making more tea. “There’s the wreckage of a ship. Straight ahead.”

Mr. Dawson followed her back outside. She pressed her binoculars to her eyes, squinting at the remains of the vessel, barely sticking up out of the water. And the little figure perched on top of it.

“See any survivors?” he asked, already beginning to adjust the boat’s course.

“Just one.”

“Alright. We’ll pick him up.”

They neared the wreckage cautiously so as to avoid accidentally damaging the Moonstone. Peter came rushing onto deck to see what was going on, heading below for a moment and returning with a rope and George in tow. The figure seated on top of the wreckage didn’t seem to even acknowledge them, huddling with a blanket of some kind covering most of his face, likely as protection from the wind.

“Hey! Hey! Can you swim it?” Peter called. The soldier didn’t respond. Didn’t even make any movement or indication that he had heard them at all. Daisy wasn’t sure if he was aware that they were there. “Dad, can you get closer?”

“Can’t risk it!”

George mumbled something to Peter, who fumbled with the rope he’d brought. “Hang on,” he tossed the rope into the water. There was a long beat where no one moved, and then, slowly, the soldier rose to stand unsteadily, clamoring to the edge of the wreckage. Peter drew the rope in and tossed it again, as close to the soldier as he could get it. The soldier flung aside his blanket, and dove cleanly headfirst into the water, clutching tightly to the rope. Daisy handed the binoculars to Mr. Dawson, rushing forward to help the two boys haul the man out of the waves and onto the deck. Water dripped copiously from his soaked clothes, his hand clinging to Peter so tightly he almost dragged the boy down with him, sitting heavily in the corner of the deck. His shoulders scrunched in on themselves, and when Daisy took a cautious step forward, to examine him for any injuries, she could see that he was shivering violently.

“Get him a blanket, George,” she said softly. The boy nodded, ducking away and returning a moment later with one of the thick, dark blue wool blankets they had stashed down below. He tucked it carefully around the soldier’s shoulders. The man grabbed onto the blanket, wrapping himself in it so tightly it was like he was hoping to disappear. He wouldn’t look up at them. Mr. Dawson bent down, examining the soldier with worried eyes.

“What’s your name?”

There came no response. The soldier’s eyes were unfocused, staring at a space on the deck. A breeze ruffled the dark, dripping fringe obscuring most of his face, and Daisy caught a glimpse of a sharp jawline and a shock of blue eyes. There was a small cut on his nose, but it didn’t look so serious that she felt the need to treat it immediately. Mr. Dawson pulled away from the soldier, steering the boat quickly away from the wreckage. Peter was eying him nervously. Daisy couldn’t blame him. It was unnerving even for her, to see a man so traumatized he couldn’t even speak.     

“Okay, boys, give him some space, yeah?” she said, shooing George and Peter away. What the man needed at the moment was to feel that he was safe. That was hard to do with a group of people gawking at you. “Let’s go finish making that tea,” she mumbled, suddenly very mindful not to speak too loud, for fear of disturbing or frightening the man further. With careful hands, she guided the boys below deck, and away from the shivering soldier. 

It had been almost an hour, and the soldier had barely moved. Instead he remained curled in on himself, burrowed so deeply in his blanket she could barely see his face. They’d all tried to keep their distance from him, to give him some space to recover from whatever had so frightened him. But Daisy was beginning to think that avoiding him wasn’t the best approach. After all, so much time had passed since they’d hauled him aboard, and he had yet to say a single word. And he was still trembling.  

“Do you want to come below? It’s much warmer,” George offered to the soldier, approaching with a mug of tea held out. But he moved in on the soldier too quickly, too loudly and suddenly. Before Daisy could open her mouth to warn him to back off a bit, he was hovering in close to him. “It’s out of the wind. Here you go,” he thrust the mug towards him, and the soldier flailed in panic at the sudden movement, knocking the tea from George’s hand. The boy jerked back with a surprised gasp. In response the soldier clutched his blanket more tightly around him, blinking. Still staring at nothing.

“Leave him be, George,” Mr. Dawson said. Daisy clutched the railing to help keep her balance as she approached them, patting George gently on the shoulder as she passed. “He feels safer on deck. You would too if you’d been bombed.”

“U-boat,” they all jerked, heads snapping around at the first words to pass the soldier’s lips. “It was a U-boat,” he pulled the blanket all the way up to his chin, as if the mere idea of one was too horrible to imagine.

“Get him some more tea, George,” Peter jumped down with a bundle of rope clutched in one hand. George bustled about, collecting the spilled mug and heading back below deck. Daisy kept her eyes glued to the soldier, his head turning to look out anxiously at the ocean around them.  

With everyone else busy she was starting to feel a little useless. Still eying the soldier curiously, she began to approach cautiously, sitting down slowly across from him. His eyes darted up to stare at her, widening slightly, as if he had just noticed her presence on the boat for the first time. 

“I’m Daisy,” she said, with a small smile. Eyes darting around, he lowered the blanket ever so slightly.

“Henry,” he croaked out finally.

“Henry,” she repeated, eyes that were bluer than the ocean blinking back at her. “Would it be okay if I took a look at those cuts on your face?”

His hand flew to the small gashes on his nose and left cheek. Expression unreadable for a moment, he examined her. Probably assessing the level of threat that she posed. Then he nodded. Smiling, she went to retrieve the first aid kit tucked away in one of the drawers, returning to sit beside Henry, pouring some disinfectant onto a rag.

“This might sting,” she warned, cupping his chin lightly and dabbing at the cuts. He flinched slightly, but didn’t make any other indication of complaint. His skin was clammy under her touch. Biting her lip, she did her best to ignore the sculpted sharpness of his features. The fullness of his lips. “Well, you won’t need stitches,” she noted. “I doubt that they’ll even scar.”

Henry just nodded. “You’ll get to keep that pretty face intact,” she was tempted to say, but figured that it wasn’t exactly the most appropriate time to flirt. No matter how pretty he looked with his big blue eyes and dark hair falling over his forehead.

“I’ll go check on your tea,” she said, patting his knee and standing. 

“Thank you,” Henry mumbled. Glancing over her shoulder, she found that he wasn’t looking at her, gaze instead fixed upon a spot on the deck again. A sad smile twitched at her lips. This poor, poor man.

“Of course.” 

Henry seemed to be doing a little better. He’d taken some tea from George, and every once in a while Mr. Dawson was able to pull an answer to a question from him. His shivering had abated enough that he was able to stand, walking around cautiously on the deck, hair and clothing mostly dry. Daisy watched as he scratched at his neck with his left hand, the golden ring encircling his finger glinting in the sun.

It was too bad. He really was very handsome.

But, well. She was used to it. Most of the men her age were already married off. It wasn’t anything to sulk about. It wasn’t like she’d already been captivated by his light blue eyes, or noticed the lean muscles in his chest and shoulders beneath his uniform.

Okay, fine. She was sulking a little.

George gently nudged a fresh cup of tea into her hands, earning himself a grateful smile, before he shuffled forward to offer to refill Henry’s cup for him. The soldier was glancing around anxiously, looking more than a little lost as he ambled around the small deck before sitting back down in his spot in the corner.

“Don’t worry,” she took a small sip of her tea. “We’ll get you home and to your wife in no time at all.”

Henry’s head snapped around to her. “Beg pardon?”

She tilted her head. “What?” her brows furrowed, confused as to what she’d said wrong. 

“I don’t have a wife.”

Her eyebrows rose, standing to walk over and sit next to him. “No?” setting her cup down on the deck, she took his left hand in hers, raising it so that the gold metal gleamed, smile teasing. “What’s this, then?”

He looked at the ring on his finger as though he’d just remember it was there. Then laughed awkwardly, shaking his head.

“It’s uh…my dad’s.”

“Alright, now I’m very confused.”

“He died a couple years ago. When I was shipped off, my mum made me take it with me. For good luck, I guess,” he let out a humorless sigh. “I used to keep it on a chain around my neck, but I was always worried about the chain breaking, and losing it…and that’s the only finger it fits on. So…” he shrugged.

Daisy leaned back, narrowing her eyes at him playfully. “Henry, are you having a laugh?” she asked suspiciously. It wouldn’t be the first time she’d been made to feel like a fool after a man spun a story to her about not having a wife only for her to find out later that he very much did.

“No!” he pulled the ring off his finger. “Here. See the engravement inside it?” holding it up so she could see, the names Dorothy & Frank were scrawled in swirling letters, complete with a date. “My name’s not Frank,” he said, tapping the identity tags around his neck.

“Alright, alright. I believe you,” she smiled. Henry slipped the ring back onto his finger. Resting his cheek on his palm, he eyed her carefully. “What about you?”

“Hm?”

“You have someone back home worrying about you?”

“Oh. No,” she let out an awkward laugh.

“I find that hard to believe. A pretty woman like you…” he broke eye contact, blushing furiously. A smile pulled on her lips. Goddamn, he was cute. 

“I spent most of my twenties and thirties traveling. It’s hard to find someone to settle down with when you’re constantly moving from one town to another.”

“Where did you travel to?”

“Spent a few years in Ireland and then Scotland. A couple more in northern England. I only just recently worked my way down to the south. I only moved to Weymouth a little while ago.”

“You’re from Wales, aren’t you?”

“What gave me away?” she laughed, in her very obvious Welsh accent. “I’m from the Newport area.”

“I went there on holiday with my parents once. It’s nice.”

“Where are you from?”

“Oh it’s um…it’s a tiny little rural village. Between London and Dover. You’d be hard pressed to find it on a map,” he said with an awkward chuckle.

“Small towns were always my favorite. They always feel so intimate and cozy.”

There was a sudden boom in the distance, and Henry jumped, scrambling at the material of the blanket still wrapped around him, eyes filling with terror. Daisy reached out a hand to touch his shoulder, rubbing circles into the tense muscles there.

“Look at me,” those big frightened eyes darted to hers. “It’s going to be okay.”

Very, very slowly, he nodded.   

Thank you for reading! Please consider leaving a comment, reblog, or like. I always appreciate feedback and love getting the opportunity to interact with you and hear your thoughts!

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Series: Part 1 of Cold Waters & Sunlit Gardens    

Main Masterlist • In the Heart of War