#it makes for a better and more realistic film with him dying

[ilovemybarricadebabies]

After watching the deleted scenes of Titanic (1997) again on YouTube last night, there’s one little scene that I wish they would have kept in because maybe it would have ended that stupid debate about Jack and the goddamn door.

Like Jack tries to get on and the door TIPS OVER, and in the deleted scene in question, a man tries to approach the door asking for a chance on it, but Jack stops him because it can only support Rose’s weight. And before Jack moves to the front, he kind of nods and accepts his fate. From the moment that the ship hit the iceberg, Jack’s goal is making sure Rose gets out alive. He doesn’t care about himself. Rose is his main priority.

And the whole “they could have kept switching” thing needs to end as well because Jack never would have let Rose get back in that water. He accepted his fate, and it’s high time the rest of you did, as well.

Also, Jack surviving would have destroyed the point of the movie which is to make each day of your life count because you never know how long you have and how your life can be taken in a blink of an eye.

And if you ever need a lesson in irony, it’s Rose saying she’ll never let go of the promise Jack made her swear to just moments before, while needing to let go of him.

And those are my Titanic thoughts of the night.

[amphitriteswife]

Onlyfans hc’s

Source: Lookism

Warnings: 18+ content below! And the word ‘moist.’

Character: DG/ James Lee

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@yue-yolk

🍬DG would remain anonymous and would rather use a fake name from his earlier name and kpop star name. This is because his manager…and fangirls would probably cause a ruckus.

🍬because of the fact he could get caught and his fans as a idol (his fans are crazy okay? We saw the stalker girl) he would be more focused on self pleasure and masturbation. He would avoid doing it with another person as much as possible.

🍬He has his hair down there dyed the same color as the hair on his head, it’s not all that bushy and personally keept it trimmed or shaves it off, but if his viewers are fond of more body hair he doesn’t mind it …he would have to dye it a more frequently though

🍬 will not wear underwear. He likes to film the lower part of his stomach and let you see the print on it. It’s already canon that he’s huge so it’s a snake down there. He’ll wear tight pants or presses it against his stomach to make it more visible.

🍬 He would make ASMR videos too, mostly about erotic scenarios or just moaning and groaning. Sometimes, maybe sometimes you can hear him self pleasure in the background if it adds to the scenario, to make it more realistic ofcourse

🍬lots of pictures. He likes pictures in his bed or the shower, but most of them are to tease and will make you come back for more. He’ll have pictures of him laying down on his silky sheets, one hand pulling a piece of the sheet so that you can’t see the part you just so desperately want to see, the best thing you’ll get is a print or outline. It might be better to use your imagination with it.

🍬 He’ll also post videos his workouts, lifting weights, going on runs….it’s just a normal activity right? Except for the fact that his clothing is incredibly tight…no underwear on? And even the angle of the camera is pointed to the most valuable part of his body…is he sweating more than usual?

🍬 POV videos are a must! His face still won’t be visible, but his body will be on display. And dont worry, it’s in multiple positions. He’ll be whatever you want, how loud, what clothes, if you even want him to wear some. His followers are his priority ofcourse. He might even do ‘specials’

🍬 If you’re willing to pay a heavy fee. And i mean a very HEAVY fee, he might reveal his face to you. But be careful, he’s rich remember? So if it’s leaked he’ll find his way to deny it and make sure it’s not going to ruin his reputation. But you will get sued. Even if its anonymous.

🍬 PRAISE. THIS. MAN. IN. THE. COMMENTS. He might just let you upgrade to premium and make special content just for you. Don’t say standard things, make him think you’re worthy. He’s an idol who has seen lots of desperation from others, show him you’re not just some horny fan. (We are-)

🍬 If it comes to a point that his hands can’t help him with stimulation, or that his fans want to see something different: he’ll use toys. It’s not something he does often, but he’ll make sure you never saw anything like it. Most of them are a wide range of pink and sometimes even red. He’ll have them rhinestoned too.

🍬 This man spent and will spend more on different kinds of things that might help with his content. They’re the most luxurious things you can get in that department. Handcuffs? Firm yet comfortable and doesn’t irritate the skin. Rope? It’s the most strongest, yet softest silk you’ll ever lay your eyes on. Vibrator? It’s pink with Swarovski rhinestones as well as his initials on it if you paid to be a premium member.

🍬 roleplay is something he’ll certainly do if he makes videos or erotic sounds. There is a limit though to what he’ll do, he has no problem with most roleplays. But step-cest or actually irl cest is not something he will do. He’ll already stated that before amd has no problems to ban ppl from the chat for even bringing it up

🍬Lowkey rubs his body in oil. Like it wouldn’t be over the top as if he stood in the rain naked or something, but more…moist? He would flex his muscles a lot though. Praise his muscles cause their great.

🍬 he blurs out his butt. Don’t ask him why. He’s scared ppl will do something with it okay? (Even though his dick is on display he’s still scared for his butt.) his butt is masculine and square since he trains his body. It not fluffy or jiggly 😔

🍬 He will not suck okay? He’ll do anything you ask. Use a vibrator. Be submissive, hell even degrading but you will not catch man gobbling on a dildo. He will not. Not ever. Not in a life time. Nada.

🍬 someone in the comments said that his hair had the same color of a pink dildo and he started crying because he actually thought about it and became insecure.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

That’s all pookies😔🙏 might do jaegyeon na next or make a pt2

[yenqa]

how enha would react seeing you at their concert!

pairing : enhypen x gn!reader

warnings : like two swear words, mentions of cuddling, relationship is public in jungwons 🤞🤞, mentions of jealousy and crying

wc : 0.84k

a/n : hope you enjoy anon! they might seem similar bc i ran out of ideas after jay also new format

heeseung

ok so we all know damn well this man is a huge flirt.

so yk he’s doing his flirty things while performing but once he spots you, its over for any engene.

he’s actually kinda shocked that you came because they didn’t tour in your area

he literally only winks in your direction and the engene next to you thinks they’re dying

he keeps looking over at you and when he sings polaroid love, you know he’s singing it to you.

but engenes keep getting suspicious because they’re like why does hee keep interacting with only that engene?????

and the clip of someone recording him singing polaroid love to you goes viral!!

jay

im sorry but realistically he does not spot you.

ok but pretend he does and he’s like :000 inside but he like hides it bc he’s in the middle of a concert!!

he gets like a splurge of confidenceand energy so he performs way better than usual (not like there is much to improve on)

and he starts getting like flirty with engenes (you) and fans are like omg what’s happening to him!!?!,!???

he smiles at you so much throughout the concert

man starts crying during shout out and you lowkey tear up a bit

after the concert you go backstage and he pulls you into the biggest hug and like twirls you around :))

bf jay is keeping me alive rn

jake

ok so we know he’s flirter number 2

idk how but he spots you immediately and his face brightens

he literally starts getting all flustered when you two make eye contact

you throw him a little hat you made/bought and he wears it THE WHOLE concert

like fever? he’s wearing it. drunk dazed? hes wearing it

he doesn’t care that it’s a cutesy hat he’s still wearing it

until his manager makes him take it off

he blows you a kiss whenever he can

and he gives himself a pat on the back whenever he sees you flustered

but he also gives himself a dating rumor because engenes notice everything

sunghoon

opposite of jay, when he spots you in the front row he gets shy

like “omg what if i mess up then y/n never likes me again”

but once he sees you having fun, all his worries are gone and he’s also having fun

he pays more attention to whatever section your in and he like keeps walking to wherever you are.

and when he’s like running through the stadium he completes your heart and your heart only

his smile grows whenever he looks at you smiling and dancing

at the end of the concert he gives a little message to engenes (you) and it’s like

“thank you so much for coming today, you make me happy when i see you dancing and having fun” blah blah blah

but you and him both know that the message is for you and you only

sunoo

you know he smiles when he spots you

bro goes from ☺️ to 😁 (that looks a little silly)

he keeps trying to not make eye contact with you but he can’t help it :((

he picks up your phone and he films a little video of him blowing a kiss to the camera (mostly to you but engenes dont know that)

at the encore he specifically requests the songs you love that they didnt perform

after the concert you know that you’re getting cuddles

he fr rushes home with you like hes zooming bc hes tired and you cuddle <33

well after he takes a shower

he loves when you play with his hair

so when you do, he falls asleep quickly

jungwon

ok so your relationship is public

he keeps waving at you and mentioning you

“y/n is here!” “y/n loves this song” “y/n knows the dance to this part of-“

enhypen just wants him to shut up about you

he performs extra hard and sends his failed winks to you

when hes running around the stadium he stops to kiss you hand before running back around

during tfw he points to you multiple times

he can’t stop smiling whenever he looks at you

he keeps eye contact while singing shout out and tears up a little but :((

he literally rushes to you after the concert like he cannot contain his excitement

i need jungwon NOW.

niki

this man gets so cocky

when he sees you filming him and only him, he grins so hard

but secretly he’s so flustered

Y/N? at my concert? filming me?

he acts extra flirty to engenes to make you jealous

when he sees you frowning a little bit, he stops and winks at you

he winks at you a little too much…

when he sees you smiling wide at his parts, he almost forgets all his moves

like how did he get so lucky with you??

if you’re relationship is public you best know he’s talking about you

“my y/n is here at the concert today!”

just be careful of jealous engenes

[doll-elvis]

PRISCILLA (2023)

~ my thoughts as an elvis fan

(credit to @urpinkstargirl for the photo)

WARNING SPOILERS AHEAD:

so I saw it last night and I’ve been stewing on it ever since as I wanted to be 100% sure in myself before saying this publicly

**brace yourselves**

After just one viewing… I feel confident in saying that I preferred this film over “Elvis” 2022 🤧. It was just so immersive and so deeply intimate that I walked away from the theater feeling like I had just lived a life with Elvis, and experienced all the ugly and wonderful things that came with it

I am seeing it again tonight and possibly tomorrow just to recapture that feeling (which made me cry… three times…)

And although I’m not the biggest fan of Sofia Coppola, there is simply no denying that she has perfected showing “girlhood” in film, and making the most unique experiences, like being Marie Antoinette and being Priscilla Presley, somehow universal to everybody. I haven’t felt being “14” since I was 14, which was a whole 5 years ago, but WHEW… I most definitely felt 14 again when watching Priscilla navigate life in Germany

Also- we all saw how Austin Butler was completely cheated out of an Oscar and so I’m begging that we do not do that again. Give the Oscar to Cailee Spaeny (who played Priscilla) right now 😤 There are no words besides “immaculate” to describe her performance. Her future is so bright as an actress, I just cannot wait to follow her career + she just seems like the sweetest person ever??

And I know it might seem insane to say that I preferred “Priscilla” over “Elvis” and some of y’all might crucify me for that take but my preference solely comes down to the fact that I appreciate Priscilla’s perspective much more so than the Colonel’s, who to me, has always been the least interesting aspect of Elvis’ story

My biggest gripe with having the Colonel narrative/tell Elvis’ life in the 2022 film is the fact that it made the film feel rather impersonal to Elvis as I don’t think the script or the storytelling ever fully allowed for Austin Butler to explore what he was like beyond the stage

And personally speaking, I have a much deeper love for Elvis the person as opposed to Elvis the performer, and I think that “Priscilla” showed the human side of him far more than “Elvis” ever did (like y’all we actually get to hear and see him reading his philosophy books in this!!!)

But before I get into what was actually depicted in film, and all my praises, I thought I would briefly state what I thought could have been done better. Don’t get me wrong, this movie was beyond amazing, however, it was definitely not without its’ faults:

1. If you have seen a lot of reviewers talk negatively about the pacing in this film- just know that they are unfortunately, completely right in that assessment. The whole timeline of Germany felt literally five minutes long, and the 70s also, felt maybe 10 minutes long which just made both the beginning and end feel rather rushed. Also there were at least 5 scenes that just faded to black before going onto the next one, and some very abrupt cuts in scenes which felt a bit awkward

2. Because this is a biopic, and because it’s based on a real life, there is no climax like you would be accustomed to normally in a film and so I think that the average viewer, like someone who may not really care about Priscilla or Elvis, will probably walk away from the film feeling unsatisfied- possibly bored. I saw it with my mom and my sister, and my mom was asleep in like 45 minutes 😭. The movie definitely got repetitive at some points but I acknowledge the fact that life is repetitive, especially for Priscilla in the 60s while Elvis was off making movies

3. While Priscilla (played by Cailee Spaeny) aged realistically and seamlessly, Elvis (played by Jacob Elordi) was essentially the same person (physically) for 95% percent of the film. For some reason, his hair was already dyed black in the Germany scenes, although we know it was brown at that time, and so there was no real transformation for him until Lisa Marie is born. The height of the actor was definitely jarring at first but eventually I got used to it…however…I damn near busted out laughing when they showed him in the Comeback special outfit 💀 His performance was nothing but incredible (ESPECIALLY THE VOICE) and so I learned to get over the physical disparities rather quickly

4. The ending of this film, particularly the song, was overwhelmingly sad and impactful but I was really disappointed that we didn’t get to see Priscilla’s and Elvis’ relationship after the divorce. This film ends with Priscilla leaving Graceland, starting her “new life”, which didn’t make much sense to me considering this movie was adapted from her book, which very much explores that part of her life, especially with Elvis

I would have really love to seen moments like this from Priscilla’s perspective ⬇️

excerpt from “Priscilla, Elvis and me” (avoid this book)

5. NO CIRCLE G RANCH!!! It is borderline criminal to make a film about Priscilla and Elvis and to not include their time spent at Circle G ranch ** which Priscilla has always said were their happiest times together **. I assume that this was likely an issue because of the budget and the fact that they only had 30 days to film but god… I would have really appreciated some of the domestic bliss that Priscilla and Elvis shared while living in the trailer on the ranch. There were many happy moments/sequences (y’all are going to die when you see the rollerblading/go cart scenes) in this movie, but I think their gradual separation/withdrawal from one another (post marriage) would have hit harder if we saw how happy they were together during their ranch phase

6. For those who have read “Elvis and Me”, we all know about the famed LSD scene that takes place and unfortunately, Coppola heavily missed the mark on it. We don’t see Lamar Fike making out with a tree, we don’t see Jerry Schilling in a closet- instead we see Priscilla and Elvis just kind of rolling around, laughing amongst themselves while the room around them turns different colors

There were definitely many key moments/stories like that missing from the film, and I honestly wish that the movie was an hour longer so that we could have seen the book more fully fleshed out

Lastly, here’s just a general synopsis of the scenes in Germany… I was going to do the whole movie but I don’t have the stamina to type it all out 😭. If y’all want to know something specific please feel free to comment below and I will let you know <3!!

After the beginning credits are shown, the film starts with Currie Grant (who was renamed as Terry West) approaching Priscilla in a diner, inviting her to a party at Elvis’ house. After talking with her parents and assuring them that Priscilla will be looked after by him and his wife, it cuts to her in the back of a car, on her way to meet Elvis. The scene is exactly like how it is in the book, Elvis asks her how old she is, he remarks that she is “just a baby” and so on- Elvis then plays “a Whole lotta shakin” at the piano and that is one of three musical performances we see from him

Priscilla is then re-invited by Currie aka Terry via Elvis to comeback to the house again. Elvis invites Priscilla up to his room, she looks around and sees letters from Anita Wood, and a poster of Bridgette Bardot just like in the book. After Elvis talks about Gladys and how he is still reeling over her death, and how lonely he has felt since then, they share their first kiss to the song “Crimson and Clovers”

There are some scenes of Priscilla at school and some scenes of her sort of convincing her parents to let her continue to see Elvis. And they do agree, but just like in the book, they want to meet him first. Elvis is questioned by Priscilla’s father on why he wants to be with her to which Elvis replies that she is very mature for her age and that he likes talking to her since she is from home aka the United States. He then assures Priscilla’s father that she will be taken care of. After that we see them going to the movies where Elvis expresses how much he wants to be a serious actor, and then they share another kiss on the car ride home. It then cuts to Christmas time where we see Elvis giving Priscilla a watch and then BOOM- Elvis and her are on the way to the airport where they say their final goodbyes as he leaves for the United States

The film really does follow closely to the book (at least from 59’ when they meet to 69’- again the 70s were really rushed) and so I really recommended to read that prior to watching the movie

As for the more sensitive scenes-

There is no explicit sex, no graphic nudity, and no scene where Elvis forces himself upon Priscilla. He does say “this is how a real man makes love to his woman” but all he does is kiss her before she pushes him off. There is a rather long “polaroid-taking” sequence where it shows all the outfits that Elvis would Priscilla dress up in but other than that, we only see Elvis and Priscilla make out

And it did show when Elvis accidentally hit Priscilla in the eye during the pillow fight scene in her book, along with the scene of him throwing a chair in her general direction after she expressed she didn’t like a demo of one his songs, and the scene where he grabs all her clothes from the closet and tells her that she should go visit her parents. I don’t think that the scenes made Elvis look abusive: Coppola was surprisingly nuanced in showing that he had reasons for his sometimes bad temperament i.e the pills he took along with the fact that he was frustrated with his film career

It also shows Elvis’ infidelities but really only through movie magazines that Priscilla sees. So it’s never explicitly shown, I would say it’s more hinted at than anything

And there are two scenes of Priscilla with Mike Stone but again, nothing that is explicitly shown, it’s just hinted at

Finally, to finish this up, this is what I wrote on my Instagram account which I very much stand by ⬇️

Just please give this movie a chance y’all, it was so beautiful and so sensitively done… I cannot wait to watch it again <3

[otakween]

Digital Monster X-evolution

If those janky Digimon World cutscenes were a whole movie, it'd be this. To be fair, I think outdated CGI has a lot more charm than a lot of the higher quality but soulless stuff they put out nowadays. Plot-wise it was nothing special, we've seen this plot a zillion times by now. They just injected it with some new gimmicks. I did find the main character charming enough. I honestly wouldn't mind seeing another attempt at an all-CGI movie as long as that didn't become the new default (slippery slope lol).

Notes:

Although the plot of this film was really simple they managed to add some convoluted lore anyways...because Digimon. Just when I was thinking "that was confusing" I saw that this wiki has a 900 page long (not really lol) explanation/play-by-play. Maybe I'll read it when it's not my bed time: https://wikimon.net/Digital_Monster_X-evolution

Of course they had to open the movie with Leomon dying (really?) Why is that a thing? I've never felt emotional seeing any Leomon die tbh lol

I think Dorumon and his digivolutions have really strong designs. His rookie form kinda looks like a furry version of Monodramon. I've been playing Digimon RPG (the MMO) and just by chance ended up with him as my partner (I actually thought I was getting Impmon lol). Fate!

Not a lot of levity here, the script took itself very seriously and the characters spent most of the film just being existential and talking about the meaning of life. Kinda heavy for a silly little monster battle film.

Legit got a little emotional when Dorumon was being bullied, but it's really easy to feel sad for a furry little creature

The CGI actually held up better than I thought it would for the most part, the mecha digimon especially looked awesome. The only "AH! KILL IT WITH FIRE!" moment was Andromon -shudder-

(Of course, Andromon is ugly in any form, but this is definitely his worst).

Weird seeing Omegamon vs. WarGreymon. I was also surprised to see Magnamon in the Royal Knights. He just seems more beast-like to me than the other knights.

Tokomon was one of those "is it cute or is it annoying?" baby characters. I'm leaning more towards cute, but there were moments where I was like "alright, that's enough of him" loi

Dorugamon kinda reminded me of Toothless. I wanna pet his big nose :3c

They just couldn't resist, they had to call something in this franchise "Yggradsil" didn't they

(They also used other Norse names, the same ones used in Ah! My Goddess).

The funky X-forms of digimon were fun, very angular. It reminds me of the newer Pokemon games how they keep adding new gimmicky forms. I'm sure we'll be seeing more of these. I guess in a way, this is a more realistic "evolution" since it has to do with the digimon reacting to their environment by developing antibodies.

I saw people complaining that Frontier only had two Royal Knights, well I guess they made up for it a bit here. Are they always gonna be working for the villain side? I wanna see a series where they're the heroes!

It was neat seeing Silphymon again. I get excited when 02 characters show up cuz it's kind of the underdog season in my mind.

The villain digimon (aside from the royal knights) weren't very well explained they just kinda showed up, caused havoc, then went away. The only reason why I have a name for any of them is cuz I read the wiki. I guess it would be hard to naturally fit in all the names...

The name "Alphamon" was kind of an eyeroll. They're running out of epic names lol. (Also, it just makes me think of alpha bros nowadays). The design is nice tho, it's got the black w/ gold highlights thing that I liked in Frontier.

Lots of badass cape shots in this (see my final screenshot above)

At the end of the movie the digital world was destroyed and then restored (Frontier much?) It wasn't really clear what that meant for the digimon. Did they all just resurrect via digiegg? Were they recreated exactly as they were before the world's destruction? -shrug-

Pretty sad that this movie never got any love in the states. I wonder if there's a fandub out there somewhere.

Apparently Digimon World 4 is related to this movie so I'll be playing that next!

[lastoneout]

Okay I'm finally sitting down to properly watch the PJO series so here's an episode-by-episode live blog I guess. (Fair warning, I haven't read the books since I was a teenager, I am a smidge of an apologist for the films, and my favorite adaptation so far has been the musical.)

Episode One:

All of the actors are doing a really good job, I especially like Sally.

The costume design for both the monsters and the humans is pretty killer. I want Percy's sweater.

I also love the little seaside cabin and want to live there!!!

This is such a mild gripe BUT as someone with dyslexia I wish there was a better way to visually depict it without like, doing the swapping letters thing cuz that's just not what it's actually like at all.

Gabe maybe feels a little too funny. Like I'm supposed to hate him and think it's justified that he deserves to be turned into stone at the end, this version of him is really.....toned down, and his banter with Percy and Sally was fun to watch. I should hate him, but really he just came across as unpleasant. Less abusive asshole and more "old married couple who share interests but can't communicate without shouting" you know?

Loved Grover's little "I'm 24 actually" lmao that was great.

Not a fan of Percy immediately recognizing the Minotaur within a millisecond of it appearing before the audience even got a good look at it. Like, I just sat there thinking "how can he even see it?" rather than feeling scared of a big monster barreling at them.

The action is uh....fine? Feels a little lackluster. Or kinda....divorced from the rest of the show weirdly?? Idk it makes me feel like I'm watching a movie of a movie if that makes sense?? But we'll see where they go with it. (I know banter during a fight isn't realistic and people make fun of Marvel for it, but like...it helps to have at least a little talking. We don't wanna be Man of Steel.)

I feel like there's been a few "slightly out of sync ADR" moments but they weren't too distracting.

Pacing into Sally saying goodbye felt a little long, kinda took the shock of her dying out of the scene, but the actress REALLY sold all the emotional beats so I'll forgive it.

I LOVE the credits sequence!!! Reminds me of the designs on that one box set of the books in a really cool way.

Episode Two:

Oh yes the ugly ass neon orange shirts are here bless!

FUCK YES THAT'S DIONYSUS BAYBEEE!! My ONLY note is that he def could have turned up the energy a little, but that's probably just bcs I love how loud and unpleasant he is in the musical and I also know how unhinged this actor can be.

Chiron is such a delight <3

I like the cabins too, way better than how I imagined them as a kid reading the books lol

Oh, I can see why the new fans fell for Luke so hard.

Grover assuming a human being squished would be like an old banana is very funny. Felt very book-humor in a good way.

Clarisse!!

Oh damn actual disabled half-bloods, very cool!

Minor but I can't actually tell what Percy did wrong with the bow? Weird editing I guess.

Aside from that I actually love a good "fuck up" montage, I honestly wish it were a little longer.

Probably doesn't matter but I don't get having them burn the food after they've started eating? I thought that was a before you sit down type thing.

Percy burning the blue candy to try to talk to his mom was sweet tho T_T

"real friends" hahahaha.....yeah.......about Luke.......

yay! hazing!

Oh I love Annabeth already >:D

Thalia.....is pronounced differently than I thought....?

(I'm sorry I'm too much of a fan of 'Tree on the Hill' for this exposition dump. That shit hits harder when coming from Grover.)

Percy giving Annabeth the "actually I suck and my self esteem is riding on this so like pls don't ask me to do anything hard T_T" talk is just, so good lmao

ofc he doesn't know what's going on Annabeth you didn't tell him anything

Okay the action is a lot better when it's between the actual characters and doesn't involve a 3D monster, though I still had trouble following all the hits Percy was taking.

Oooh I can see why people did so much art of Percy being claimed that was a good shot.

FUCK YEAH TELL HIM YOU'RE SALLY JACKSON'S SON

(I hope they kept the Oracle in the attic...)

Okay I have to go do some things and then I'll be back for more!

[isfjmel-phleg]

Random OC Facts: Elystan (Revised and Updated)

This is a combination of two earlier lists, with the addition of some new facts!

Operates on the casual assumption that people will say yes. After all, they usually do, don’t they?

Knows where everyone’s buttons are and can and will push them, usually when bored.

...and he’s bored pretty easily. The one thing he keeps coming back to is his books, which require minimal exertion and are more comforting in their predictability than he’ll admit.

Dubious medical history because the list of survived illnesses changes a little each time he rattles it off. Whatever it is, there’s definitely some kind of chronic problem, and he doesn’t like talking about it.

Two moods: “There’s Nothing Wrong with me” and “I have a cold and I’m DYING.” There is no in-between.

Better at chess than his half-brother Delclis, even when he’s not making up his own rules (standard practice with every game he plays--do not play cards with this kid).

Unlike Delclis, can make friends if given the opportunity. Whether he can keep them, though...

Has lived on his own country estate (away from his parents in the city) on and off his entire life. Has no idea what most of the grounds look like.

Owns an elephant. A small one. Not his idea. Is not entirely sure how this happened. (It was a gift from a foreign monarch trying to curry favor with Elystan's father.)

At best an entertaining conversationalist and at worst an acerbic one. As fun as the latter mode is, he'd really much rather charm you than insult you.

Has kept every single telegram and two-line letter his father has ever sent him.

Adventure stories are his favorite, the cheesier and less realistic the better.

Captions the silly photographs his friend Amarantha sends when they’re on good terms and writes her rants in Latin (which she's never learned) when he’s cross with her.

Is ambidextrous and thus can write for long stretches of time when he chooses. Most of the time he doesn’t.

Once cajoled his father into letting him come along on a hunting trip. Best day of his life, until it became the worst. They Do Not Speak of it.

Considers his greatest achievement the time he stole Delclis’s bicycle and made it all the way around the park on it without getting caught. He suffered for it later but it was totally worth it.

Gets into passionate arguments about things he doesn’t give a darn about. Frequently. Got very invested once in trying to get Delclis to concede the superiority of a poet he’s never read over another poet whom he hasn’t read either.

One of the few projects he hasn’t abandoned is the ongoing fantasy world creation he’s collaborating on with Amarantha. They have maps, they have histories, they have concept art--it’s pretty elaborate, thoroughly childish, and the most fun he’s had in his life.

Switches to Greek or Latin and pretends not to know English in order to get out of more than minimal telephone conversations with his mother.

Has the highest hopes when looking forward to something and the lowest lows when disappointed. He’s been disappointed more than he cares to recall.

Has an interest in (trick) photography, film (especially special effects), and illusion–fascinated by anything that makes something appear what it isn’t. Knows how to manipulate photos but otherwise hasn’t progressed far beyond card tricks.

Has gravitated toward learning languages (when he bothers to do schoolwork at all) because of both a natural gift and the enjoyment of saying things not everyone can understand, like having a code limited to a select group. Is nevertheless struggling with his Liennese lessons when he goes to Hollingham.

Creates various codes and ciphers for fun. Has tried to get Delclis (when they still lived in the same house) to keep up a correspondence with him in code for the excitement of having a secret. It never caught on, although he has tried to introduce the concept to his father too.

An ingenious and perceptive gift giver–it’s the ultimate form of messing with people. Unfortunately this extends to on-the-nose prank gifts too, but if he genuinely likes someone, he can easily pinpoint what they will most appreciate and enjoy the reaction.

Proud owner of a collection of ceremonial swords and daggers to be worn with dress uniforms on state occasions. They’re stored in a place where supposedly he can’t find them and be tempted to play with them, but this has not stopped him from taking them out occasionally and wondering what it would be like to learn to properly use them.

One of the pinnacles of his existence was a family holiday sailing to Faysmond. Took to the ship in no time and enjoyed himself following the crew around and annoying them with questions. His father has promised him a trip to Otionovia when he turns sixteen and he can’t wait.

Has vague memories of a rainy afternoon when his mother introduced him to improvising sock puppets and made him laugh with their conversations and silly voices. But this isn’t in keeping with his understanding of her and so he usually dismisses the memory. He does, after all, remember a lot of things that probably never really happened.

Has frequently given Edmara his Hopeley fanfiction ideas to pass on to her husband for use in future stories. They’re creative but utterly ridiculous, and somehow she always seems to forget to tell Levico about them. Elystan has tried to write them himself but has yet to finish anything.

Once asked Delclis what would happen if the lenses in his pince-nez turned into clocks. Delclis had no idea what to do with such a question and tried to provide a scientific answer for why that’s unlikely and absurd, while Elystan ignored that and proceeded to play around with the idea over the top of him.

Hopes someday to be invited to a fancy-dress party so he can make use of the Morrick Hopeley costume he has put together (including two flat caps worn on top of each other with one backward, to simulate Hopeley’s iconic ridiculous hat).

Has an antipathy toward milk, mostly because he's been forced to drink far too much of it over the years, leading to his resorting to some rather...creative methods of getting rid of it.

Has a surprising amount of technical (less practical) medical knowledge for someone his age because his doctor would sometimes let him look through any medical books he had on hand while treating him, as a distraction while treating him. The gorier facts are Elystan's favorites.

Has never been outdoors when it's raining. Has never used an umbrella or a raincoat or galoshes. Amarantha tried to describe petrichor to him once and he looked at her like she had two heads.

As callous as he can be sometimes, is genuinely quite gentle and sympathetic with anyone who is ill or in pain. It was a shock for him to find out that his doctor's son, who is close to his age, is in a sanitorium, and he immediately wanted to do something (but what?) to help.

Tends to use humor as a coping mechanism. He gets more sardonic if he's not in a good place. If he's not at least attempting to joke anymore, it's not a good sign.

[detectivehole]

hey i finally watched the evil dead. it was pretty good. b (the b is a thumbs up because i dont have emojis on my keyboard)

which evil dead movie is your favourite and why (you can say multiple if you like)

i like the use of b as a thumbs up im stealing that

im glad you liked the evil dead! it's a funny series

my favorite movie is no question the very first evil dead movie from 1981. you asked why so i put a massive set of paragraphs of incoherent rambling below

it's a very impressive and influential project for its haphazard budget and production (even if its sequel, which used the same shooting methods, is what popularized them) which is admirable. visually is just nice to look at imo- im no film buff or even the biggest movie fan overall so i can't say why it looks as good as it does to me, but it just does. it's gross and strange and erie and i enjoy that in its visuals.

what certainly shoots it to the number one spot for me though is the characterization, most especially of ash but really of everyone. i found the way everyone behaved and interacted especially realistic, and uniquely compelling for me. for horror, which is a genre that usually takes liberties with behavior for dramatic effect (not criticizing that), that's not particularly common

they don't always get along, but they're all clearly friends. characters are hesitant to resort to violence but simultaneously totally willing to defend themselves. panic drives people to make dumb decisions but no one ever makes decisions i would call totally senseless. it's all very much believable. all the characters display this but ash (understandably) depicts it all the best. i wish i could articulate it better than this but i can't lol

two particular scenes i like;

- ash is finally the last one left, and he's just in the house, surrounded on all sides by the dead and dying and demonic, and it's a charged scene, but it's not tense, because it's not supposed to be. you understand in that moment- both because of the structure of a film but also just bc it does a good job communicating it- that ash is physically safe from attack for a bit. no one's gonna pounce yet. that is because the demons are focusing on mentally attacking him. it's the demonic mocking scene, where all of these things puppeting his dead friends and family are just teasing him over and over like children while he takes the time to freak the fuck out, and they laugh and jeer. and idk i just really love that scene it's very VERY compelling to me. i think it's the strange sense of inexplicably physical safety (however short) combined with the childish demonic taunting; a lot of demons in media taunt but they tend to do so in more "ohhhh so scary" or overtly violent ways. the demons in this scene aren't not doing that exactly, it's just that it's way more deliberately annoying and childish in its execution rather than super spooky, subtle, or esoteric

- the walls bleed scene (it's my pinned post rn). ash goes to get amo in the Evil Basement and the demons make a bunch of weird shit happen. why i like this scene is way less deep- it's a deliberately funny scene; goofy music is playing, it's got a lot of visually appealing shots, a comical amount of blood, and it does stuff that ties back into the "childish, goofy, but effective ways the demons torture ash" thing. also 21yo bruce campbell absolutely covered in bright red fake blood is hot i will not deny that

[skarletterambles]

Just got back from Twisters!

I know the first thing everyone does it compare it to the first film, but I honestly feel they're a little like apples and oranges. Both are juicy, sweet fruit that's good for you. One's red and had an odd shape, while one is orange and round. That is, they share a lot of qualities, and the differences between them aren't inherently bad or good.

Do I like the original better? Definitely. But that doesn't mean I didn't really enjoy the second one, too.

Spoilers below.

Pros:

Glen Powell is super easy on the eyes.

The words "suck zone" were uttered.

Chickens are the new cows.

The mention of the Fujiwara Effect warmed my weather geek heart.

Excellent CGI.

Romance was less a focus in this than it was in the original, which surprised me, considering the marketing. There's a difference between rekindling a dying relationship and sparking a new one, of course, but the second movie focused more on bonds forged through emotional support than romantic vibes.

I watch enough YouTube storm chasers to get a kick out of the way the movie lovingly roasted them and that culture.

El Reno: a name that will live in tornadic infamy, even if the storm it's most known for didn't hit the town itself (thank goodness). I'm glad they used that location instead of destroying Wakita again or some other random town.

They didn't take the cliché way out and make Javi a bad guy. It would have been so easy to turn him into a money-hungry bastard who saw the other guy was winning over the girl and went off the deep end. The fact that he swerved back into wholesomeness was definitely the better way to take the story.

The tornadoes didn't growl like lions.

The characters were likable enough that I cared if they lived or died. (Which may seem like a low bar, but in an action/disaster movie, it's far from a given.)

Kate's grief and trauma were portrayed realistically, not as a joke or something she should just toughen up and get over.

The wind turbines being wrecked by a twister must have seemed a bit over the top when the scenes were being shot, but after the ones that got knocked over, twisted, and even set aflame by the Greenfield, Iowa, tornado earlier this year, the ones in the movie actually fared better! Life imitates art, I guess!

Cons:

I'm not a fan of country music so the songs didn't appeal to me much. The background soundtrack was kind of forgettable, too. Nothing like the epic "We're on the hunt for a tornado" theme from the first movie (the d-duh-duh DUDDA DUH DUH" one).

Some parts were really predictable, especially the very beginning and the end.

Ben grew on me, but I think Melissa was a better example of "character from outside the storm chasing world who's terrified and confused and just wants to survive the craziness."

We learned all about Kate's past but very little about Tyler's. I would have liked more insight into what made him tick and how he got into his line of work. I know we got a little at the rodeo, but considering how much of the movie was spent going over Katie's history it felt a little unbalanced.

Kate and Tyler's banter was fine, but didn't approach the chemistry that Jo and Bill had.

Having said that, I also felt the movie was a tiny bit longer than it needed to be.

A movie theater is a terrible place to ride out a tornado. Any large room like that is. Without the support of walls, collapses are a huge risk. (Not to mention the way the Xenia F5 dropped a school bus on the stage in the high school auditorium.) You want as many walls between you and the tornado as you can get. I understand there wouldn't be room in the bathrooms and back hallways for everyone, but having Plan A be to hide between/under theater seats made me shake my head.

At least as far as I could see (and I did sit through the credits) Reed Timmer didn't get any kind of shoutout. As a significant inspiration for one of the main characters, I felt he deserved that.

Mixed:

The stormchasing sidekick characters were more diverse, ethnically, but I didn't feel they had the variety of characterization that the originals did. They all had the "grungy truck stop" aesthetic but not that much individual personality. That might be just an effect of a first viewing when it's hard to concentrate on details, though. I liked the guy usually riding shotgun with Tyler, and the drone pilot, but they're no Dusty. (Then again, who is?)

Decent humor. Not as prominent or quotable as in the first, but still worth some chuckles.

There weren't as many in-jokes and callbacks to the first movie or storm chasing culture in general as I had hoped. The ones that were there (like Kate using dandelions to do what Bill did with a handful of dirt) were nice, though.

Was the firenado realistic? No. Was it cool looking? Yeah. Was the cool factor worth stretching credulity that much? Meh. I guess.

They did point out that sheltering under an overpass is a horrible idea, which was good as that's a widespread myth that has gotten people killed, but at the same time...the characters still did it. And then proceeded to prove why it's a terrible idea by getting sucked out by the wind tunnel effect. I get that they were panicking, but if you know an underpass is a bad place to be, why not do what experts actually recommend and get down in a ditch? In a storm as strong as the one they faced, they were still screwed, I guess, but I still would have liked to see the characters act like they knew what they were "supposed" to do.

It was definitely less cheesy than the first film. As a Wisconsin girl, I like cheese, though.

I always find nitpicks to ramble about, but overall, I enjoyed it a lot. I had tried not to get my hopes up, and this movie exceeded my expectations. I don't know that I'll rewatch it every few years like I do Twister, but I wouldn't mind seeing it again at some point.

[nyxknocks]

This was a bland movie. Typically I try to steer clear of the synopsis for these films so I don't get influenced by anything else, but I skimmed this one and even with that it is so... vague. Nothing felt particularly cohesive throughout this film to me. It fits the more slice of life type of cut of just. Randomness. But it's also not random? The synopsis fit because this was such a long (feeling) movie fully of nothing.

Everyone hates Okin (?) for being a moneylender/loan shark type thing which like, rightfully so. She is insufferable in this movie too, but the other's don't seem much... better? Everyone is flawed which is realistic I suppose. It seems with Okin and Otomi (I think?) both seem to hate the fact they're aging as both of unsaid references to it. (Like the literal mirror scene with Otomi and her daughter. Youth vs aging. Then Okin's scene with the covered mirror where her fake smile falls). The sick one (Tamae?) has a rough relationship with her son because of the dad dying (And what's up with her making her son call her 'sister'?????? Can you say "emotional incest"). The other one is. I have no idea. Just there. Trying to have a kid I guess. You go girl.

While I don't like Okin by any means, I understand aspects of her character fairly well. They show her extremely securing her home at night to sleep, which I think tells a lot about her character. They make it a joke to say she hates men (and like.. everything under the sun apparently) but she was almost killed? Why does everyone gloss over that? The dude comes around too and everyone tells him to go see her!!!! What!!! The fuck!!! He tried to murder her?! And then they're implying that he deserves compensation for it because he went to jail and can't get a job now? I'm so confused. Like, y'all hate her, I get that, but did you hate her before or after the attempted murder. They're haters fr.

Also showing up to ask for money..... the audacity. Then her "great love" doing the same??? Diabolical. Whatever she did in her past life clearly came for her in this one because damn.

I truly don't see how this film is so highly regarded. Granted, I am extremely tired watching it and maybe I'm missing something? But this was a slogfest. None of these characters were interesting. It felt like just 4 days of catty old women being stingy and hateful. Like I said, I think part of Okin's is justifiable to an extent. She was almost killed. But damn.

The only credit I can give this movie is the very small and subtle nods to Okin's trauma. Also, deaf representation! Hate how they interacted with her though. I absolutely hated the sudden pivot to internal monologuing, too, because I feel like this movie did fairly decent with showing things without having to explicitly state it (the mirror, the dude's leg shaking before he got trashed to beg for money, etc). Definitely gonna read other posts and can't wait for the discussion in class because what.

What.

[sharpchinsimp]

Hello!!

🔎2. What is your favourite mission? 💬9. What is your favourite quote from the game? 🔗12. Which character do you feel you are most similar to?

Hi, thanks for the questions!

🔎2. I absolutely love all of the FIB missions, I Fought the Law, Hood Safari and Bury the Hatchet, but if I had to pick one it would be By the Book. It is super controversial and shocking, it's unique, all my favorite characters come together, it reveals the essence of Michael and Dave’s deal and the plot of the game. This is the most memorable and interesting mission for me.

💬9. There are a lot of short funny memetic quotes in the game, they always make me smile. I love when Devin does a super evil thing and then says "Namaste", it's sooo funny, he's so awful with his fake spirituality.

As for the "deep" quote, I won't be original and say that "Surviving is winning, Franklin". This quote fully reveals the reasons for Michael's morally terrible actions, allows us to better understand him and maybe justify him. As opposed to the heroic position shown in films and imposed by morality, where you have to die for the sake of something, or you are a coward and selfish, where love or friendship is worth dying for, or where it is fashionable to live brightly and die young, this sounds more realistic and beautifully complements the deceitful world of the Vinewood dream shown in GTA V. Michael tells us that life is actually more valuable than we think, and the fear is stronger than we think when we are safe. We can condemn him and think that we would definitely have acted differently, but when we find ourselves face to face with death, the will to live can be stronger than all our beliefs, we do everything to survive and be safe, and only then do we realize at what cost this was given to us. Also this kind of philosophy is closer to the primitive order of society or the wild, where it doesn’t matter how terrible the things you’ve done, as long as you survive and can have children, you are a winner of evolution, and this is quite unusual for a person who likes to sit on the couch and watch movies, and also tries to be a good family man. This reveals Michael's wild nature, which may have attracted Trevor. This quote makes Michael a more complex and interesting character, whether we agree with him or not.

🔗12. I wish I could associate myself with some cool character, but no, I can't say "literally me" when I look at anyone in this game. But I would say that I am very similar to the typical Los Santos resident. I love lattes in a paper cup, coconut milk, yoga and meditations, talking about crazy conspiracy theories just for fun, watching stupid shows and pretentious arthouse films, buying things I don't really need, lying in my room all day and playing games, and all that. I'm a hipster, lol.

[byneddiedingo]

Robert De Niro in Taxi Driver (Martin Scorsese, 1976)

Cast: Robert De Niro, Jodie Foster, Cybill Shepherd, Harvey Keitel, Albert Brooks, Leonard Harris, Peter Boyle. Screenplay: Paul Schrader. Cinematography: Michael Chapman. Art direction: Charles Rosen. Film editing: Tom Rolf, Melvin Shapiro. Music: Bernard Herrmann.

It's a truism that movies and dreams have much in common: We experience them in the dark; we ascribe portents and personal insights to them; they present us with a non-linear experience, in which events don't follow in logical sequence, and point of view is continually shifting. And nobody knows this better than Martin Scorsese, who gives us in Taxi Driver a story that appears to be realistic but which, the more we ponder it, proves to be dreamlike. Take the conclusion of the film, for example: After slaughtering a roomful of brothel patrons and personnel, Travis Bickle (Robert De Niro) attempts suicide but fails, and in a coda we see that he has become a hero, that the 12-year-old prostitute Iris (Jodie Foster) he has tried to rescue has returned to her parents, and that Betsy (Cybill Shepherd), whom he has frightened by stalking, now regards him as a hero, too. It is the most unlikely of "happy endings" in an era that had begun to mock such conventional resolutions. So it's no surprise to find that there are those who think that the entire sequence is a dream, or a fantasy of the dying Travis. Certainly there are things in the sequence that don't entirely jibe with a realistic interpretation, and not just the fact that Scorsese himself is not inclined to anything so square as a happy ending. The news clippings on the wall of Travis's apartment don't look like actual clippings, and the photograph of Travis included with them hardly looks like De Niro. Iris has been adamant about never returning to her parents. And Betsy seems unlikely to warm up to Travis after he shocked her by taking her to a pornographic movie. Scorsese has never endorsed, nor fully repudiated, this interpretation of the ending as a fantasy, but the screenwriter, Paul Schrader, has said that the ending brings the film full-circle, meaning that Travis's murderous loner cycle will begin all over again. I think it better to regard the whole film as a nightmare about contemporary urban loneliness, filtered through what Scorsese knows best: motion pictures. From the moment the saxophone begins playing Bernard Herrmann's theme, we are cast into the mythical realm of the film noir, a genre dear to Scorsese's heart. Cinematographer Michael Chapman turns 1970s New York City into a city of dreadful night, a neon-lighted hell full of smoke and steam, and Scorsese manipulates extras into demonic gatherings. One of the more shocking sequences takes place when Scorsese himself plays a passenger in Travis's cab, making him wait outside an apartment house and watch the silhouette of the passenger's wife on a window shade as she has a meeting with her Black lover. (The passenger uses an uglier word to describe the lover.) But the scene is not shot realistically: It should be clear to even the most naïve movie-watcher that the silhouette has been crafted with special lighting, a kind of distancing device that puts the emphasis on the film as a parable and not as a docudrama. More and more, I come to think of Taxi Driver as Scorsese's greatest film because it makes us not only reflect upon and challenge what movies are doing to us but also because it gives us a sense of modern anomie unequaled in any other film. Travis Bickles are all around us, and in America, with its laxness about weaponry and its emphasis on individual liberty, they continue to appear, whether in the form of Arthur Bremer -- the man who attacked George Wallace, whose diaries De Niro studied while creating Travis Bickle -- or John Hinckley, whose Taxi Driver-colored fantasies drove him to shoot Ronald Reagan to attract Foster's attention, or the next psychopath with a grievance whom we'll learn about after the tragic fact. But Scorsese should not be blamed -- indeed, he and De Niro should be praised as highly as possible -- for bringing Travis to our attention, for taking our nightmare and reprising it for us so effectively.

[orwellsunderpants]

Coraline and Abuse

I just finished watching Coraline. It’s a delightfully creepy film with an amazing soundtrack, but it also made me sad, because so much of the film centers around abuse and neglect, and not just on the part of the Beldam.

I really didn’t like Coraline’s real parents. They were both neglectful at best, and the mom is definitely emotionally abusive, both to Coraline and to Coraline’s father. It hurt to see the way Coraline’s mother treated her husband and daughter, and it was easy to see why Coraline might have wanted to stay with the Other Mother and the Other Father, at least at first.

In a way, this movie functions as a metaphor for the way the cycle of abuse gets perpetuated, because it shows how a child who is raised by emotionally abusive and/or neglectful parents is likely to succumb to love-bombing by an even more abusive person later down the line, and to get caught up in a destructive relationship in which their partner is in some fashion a reflection of one or the other of the parents.

In the film, Coraline gets away from the Beldam, and relationships are somewhat repaired, represented by the denouement in which everyone is working together to create a real garden. But the denouement also hints that Coraline’s mom still has issues, so I doubt the neglect and abuse will have stopped, not least because Coraline’s parents don’t seem to remember anything about having been held captive by the Beldam, and based on how they behave earlier in the film, they seem unlikely to give credence to anything Coraline might say about that experience. They don’t even seem to notice that Coraline is covered in spiderwebs when they first see her after she gets home from fighting off the Beldam, suggesting that either they’re still neglectful and in denial about their ordeal, or else that they’re under the Beldam’s spell.

I’m not hopeful that it’s the former, because abusive and neglectful people rarely ever change. Coraline may have restored the eyes to the ghost children, but I wonder whether she’ll ever be able to make her parents actually see her. And while remaining with her real parents is admittedly less horrible than allowing the Beldam to take her eyes and give her buttons in exchange, it’s still probably going to be a relationship of abuse and neglect on some level. So while the ending of the film is a more or less happy one, at least it’s more realistic than many others, in that the abusive characters in Coraline might not be entirely reformed.

Then there’s the case of Wybie. He’s clearly afraid of his grandmother, which suggests that she treats him less than well. There’s a generational cycle of abuse there, too, since the grandmother’s sister was cozened away by the Beldam, who probably offered that girl the appearance of a better life than the one she had at home, which was sufficiently awful that she allowed her eyes to be taken and buttons sewn over the sockets. Ms Lovat, by contrast, remained behind in that abusive environment, which she perpetuates with her own grandson.

Coraline herself is abusive to Wybie. She shows practically from the minute she meets him that she has learned from her mother that it’s okay to treat people poorly, and she confirms this through her delight at the Other Mother having made the Other Wybie unable to speak. Although at the end Coraline seems to have decided that Wybie actually is someone worth knowing, it’s a shame that it took him nearly dying in an attempt to save her life for her to see that, and it makes me wonder the degree to which Coraline will have left behind her own abusiveness, even after her terrifying adventure.

[andrewblogafamer112a]

Blog Assignment #3

This week I wanted to discuss Candyman. Although I enjoyed the original Candyman film in terms of horror, it was a highly problematic film. Mainly because the film portrays black trauma through a white lens. We see this through the main character being Helen, who is a white woman. She goes into Cabrini Green and essentially starts invading people’s personal spaces near their home, taking pictures of everything (she took a picture of someone’s front door) and asking people to give her information. Cabrini Green in itself was problematic because it was overexaggerated to make black communities seem worse off (the directors even admitted to bringing in more trash to set the scene). Moreover, her partner was black and made several racist comments about Cabrini Green which I thought was a disturbing way for the directors to pass off racist comments without any accountability (kind of like a microaggression- make the black character say what the white person is thinking). In regards to Candyman, he was the embodiment of black trauma and represents the history of racial violence against black people (he died from a white mob that cut off his hand and burned him alive). With this in mind, it would make sense for Candyman to seek vengeance against white people only but the film directors made him kill everyone. There was a lot of physical violence that I could see against black characters such as Helen’s partner who died brutally in the hands of Candyman. Despite all these problems, Tony Todd did a great job in his role as Candyman and he made it very scary which I thought the new Candyman lacked. Although the new Candyman was much better and less problematic, it was not really scary for me. It did portray black horror and trauma through a black lens, but it just felt like for most of the film Anthony was fighting a mental battle against Candyman to regain control of his mind. In other words, for most of the film it was just Anthony and the occasional murder but otherwise it was not until the end of the film where Anthony fully becomes Candyman (also Tony Todd did such a great job it is hard to beat). Otherwise, I thought the film did a great job in depicting black trauma specifically through art, such as Anthony’s art exhibition. I also thought the film did a good job to not dump trama porn onto the audience because it illustrated violence against black people through puppet shows. To add, the main characters were all black and all of the black characters survive except for one girl (but even then we don’t see her brutally getting murdered). For most of the film, it is all white people dying which makes sense considering how Candyman came to be. I also like how Cabrini Green was more realistic and people were out and about doing their laundry, compared to in the old film where it seemed like everyone was locked up in their houses except for the gang members.

[frankendykes-monster]

I know you're not a fan of the first Nightmare on Elm Street at all, but what would you say about Freddy Krueger as a character? He's endured as one of the most revolting, bombastic and iconic horror villains. The sequels(even if not all were good) actually gave him more personality, which probably contributed to him being so memorable.

I'm fascinated, in concept at least, by how Freddy kills every child and teenager in the town where Elm Street resides over the course of the first six films barring Freddy's Revenge which I guess isn't "canon". The television series, Freddy's Nightmares, is basically him just celebrating the fact that he won. I recently read that Freddy is pretty explicitly designed to look in part like a traditional demon which is a major reason why the more realistic burn victim design of the remake doesn't work (beyond the ableism). I'm not really sure what to make of the couched fears behind depicting Freddy's inciting incident given that that's a major blind spot across the original series; I'm aware that there are deleted scenes for the 1984 film that do a better job explicitly stating what's going on when Nancy confronts her mother about the situation.

I personally don't think I'm all that scared by Freddy, maybe because tying the fear of dying in your sleep or having apocalyptic nightmares to a single figure really ties back how gruesome those things can be. I've never been super interested in his design, his motivations, or his personality, but I do like some of the quips in Dream Warriors, before he devolved into self-parody. The kill in the fourth film where Freddy turns one woman into a cockroach and then later she finds herself inside a roach motel that he's holding has been described as "the most vulgar abuse of his powers" and I'm inclined to agree, it's rare for him to really just play all the cards when he's ahead like that.

[onesemesterfilmstudentta]

Film #6: Ugetsu Monogatari

It's interesting how the movie twines several tales (the Ugetsu Monogatari tales but also Tobei's original(?) tale) into one plot and keeps the most sentimental or interesting scenes (the last night with a wife, the ghostly mansion, etc). Otherwise, the original tales certainly meander…

The professor introduced this as a ghost story and considering the movies we've watched so far I was pretty certain this movie would end up a tragedy. There are certainly moments of tragedy and horror absolutely but the ending was much happier than I expected. Writing this now, I'm not very satisfied with the plot. This is probably after having sat through two movies where the female characters are so obviously more trapped in their circumstances than the men. Because of men's actions, women are left to fend for themselves as prostitutes, singers, and beggars or die altogether.

It leaves a sour taste in my mouth thinking that the men in this movie can say, "Oh, woe is me! I only realize now that I only wanted to be rich and famous because I wanted to make my wife happy too!" Genjuro, I know you were "bewitched" but you laid down with another women, you gave kimonos to another woman, you gave yourself to another woman, so pardon me if I relished him having all his money taken away and trudging back home to a broken-down house. It's also laughable that the "enchantress" all along, while yes she did suck his energy, was NOT a fox spirit (tricks men like a succubus) like I thought but an actual innocent girl who just wanted to experience true love! He not only cheated on his wife but also shattered the heart of a girl who is already a ghost! I did NOT expect to sympathize with the ghost of a ghost story this way.

That being said, the scene with Genjuro's wife, now a ghost, who had to contend herself with one last night of happiness there with her family, was still a little sweet. It was probably intended to make the viewer just as angry as sad. At least, it made me very angry. The way she still cares for her husband, laying a blanket over him and making sure his feet are covered; how she had to hide her tears from him; how she sat by her husband and son and worked on clothing until the morning came- all through the movie, all she wanted was to live happily with her family. Your wife is dead, Genjuro! Tobei, you're not much better!

I'd rather not talk any more about the plot. What I do like is the director's confidence in using long shots that track the actors through a scene. Because of the war background and the seriousness of the violence, Ugetsu Monogatari feels shockingly realistic at times. Yet these tracking shots are incredibly beautiful as well. My favorite scene is the dream-like fog that surrounds the four central characters as they're on a boat. It is as if the background is painted in soft shades of pink, grey, and blue. Diegetically, Tobei's wife is singing too and everyone seems so content. Genjuro's wife even says she is glad because she feels sure taking this boat was safer than taking the road. The scene at this point is peaceful and serene. This serenity is quickly broken as another boat comes into view. The boatman, before dying, warns them of pirates on the water. So quickly, even as the music, background, and characters seem to feel safe, the chaos of war rears its ugly head again and the cast are scurrying for safety once more.

Another example is the first time Genjuro enters the ghost girl's mansion. As he and the girl's nurse walk through the hallways, the camera follows them from a distance as Genjuro looks obviously nervous. Their path is guided by the rectangle frames of the screen doors and Genjuro himself is positioned in an open rectangle when he sits down to await the ghost girl's entrance. This scene is an exceptionally long shot and it drips with Genjuro's nervousness (which is becoming the audience's because the girl and the nurse are very strange).

The composition of many of the shots is also beautiful as well. One shot that comes to mind is Genjuro "escaping" the mansion. He crashes out into a courtyard and falls onto his back. Tree branches are jutting into the foreground so that his figure is enclosed by them. I'm sure there is some symbolic meaning I am missing but as an image it was pretty.

The panning was also interesting as well! The best examples came from Genjuro's time with the ghost girl. The panning blended with transitions from shot to shot of the two enjoying their time together. The most interesting one was the transition from hot spring to a field. I am used to most pans being incredibly quick - the blur is used to make an easy transition - but this pan was much slower than that! The panning would also be used to block out violence or scenes that would be hard for a viewer to watch too. Even if it's hard to watch, these pans let the imagination run in the worst ways.

I also liked what little music there was is often diegetic. One of the cast is singing and playing an instrument or someone else in the background is. For example, there was a flute player in the background of a market scene or at least when Genjuro was in the market one of those times.

On a technical level, this film was simply amazing and I enjoyed "watching" it even if I didn't enjoy the plot very much. I would also like to end by saying both Genjuro and Tobei displayed maidenless behavior. I have already elaborated.