#it's not too late too join the Steven fest! | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

just-a-spark · 4 years

Text

The Before, and The After Part 1

A Knives Out Story

Series Masterlist

Warnings: Language, sexual content (This chapter is tame, but in the future)

Summery: A wealthy classmate of Meg’s becomes close to the family- a little too close to the playboy grandson of Harlan Thrombey. The events before, and after, Harlan Thrombey’s death.

Elizabeth Stevens fidgeted in her chair as Detective Elliott stood across from her, whispering with an officer named Trooper Wagner. She pulled her thick red hair over her shoulder, and the soft waves cascaded over her like a river of blood. She had the deep color of red that looked almost unnatural against her pale, freckled skin. Her lips were painted the same color of her locks, and the pout she sported emphasized how plump they looked.

“Excuse me?” She raised her hand to get the men’s attention, “Are you two going to question me or not? I have places I need to be.”

Trooper Wagner faced her and smiled weakly, and the woman tried to shrink back into her chair at the attention, “I’m so sorry ma’am. We’ll get started in a moment. Where do you need to be exactly?”

Elizabeth paled a little, not expecting him to ask her about her personal life, “Uh, I have a doctor’s appointment.” She rested her left hand on her stomach, her massive diamond shimmering in the fluorescent lights of the police station.

Elliott pulled out the chair across from her, and she cringed as its legs scraped against the floor, “Well, why don’t we get started then. Your husband is Phillip Stevens, correct? His father is in charge of the Thrombey Estate.” Elliott read from a file and Elizabeth nodded, “I’m assuming that is how you have come to know the Thrombey clan so well?”

“Well...” Elizabeth trailed off and looked to the back wall. She swallowed and took a deep breath, but as the memories started flooding back she smiled, “Not exactly.” Elliott smirked at her and she crossed one muscular leg over the other and leaned back in her chair, “The Thrombeys are the reason I met my husband, not the other way around.”

“Mrs. Stevens, are you aware of the reasoning behind your visit with us today?” Trooper Wagner asked from the back wall.

Elizabeth inhaled deeply and took a drink of her water, “Harlan Thrombey committed suicide a few days ago. I’m guessing you want to question me about it?”

“Your father-in-law suggested it. He said you and Harlan were close.” Detective Elliot pressed and Elizabeth bit her bottom lip nervously. Elliott and Wagner shared a confused glance, then Elliott turned back to Elizabeth, “Perhaps he was wrong?”

“No.” Elizabeth said quietly, finally looking the detective in the eye, “I knew Harlan very well. I knew all of them very well.”

“Knew? Or know?” Wagner clarified.

Elizabeth shifted in her chair, twisting her mouth to the side and looking down, “My relationship with Harlan was strained in the end, that rippled down to the rest of the family. Harlan was the center of their universe, without him, they’ll self destruct.”

Three Years Earlier

Meg Thrombey drove down the dirt road toward her grandfather’s mansion a little too fast, but they were running late for her family’s Harvest Fest picnic, and her Aunt Linda wouldn’t be pleased about it.

“Listen, you aren’t ready for my family, but I appreciate you keeping me company.” Meg laughed as her “Big Sister” from Amherst College pulled her Jimmy Choo heels off the dash.

“It’s fine. I’m sure I’ve seen worse.” Elizabeth Reynolds chuckled, looking out the window at the beautiful woods. “This place is gorgeous.”

“Just wait until you see it. His house is so creepy, but you’re gonna love it.” Meg promised as they pulled up to a metal gate. After waiting a moment, the groundskeeper let Meg in and she continued on her way, looking at her watch and swearing under her breath, “We were supposed to be here an hour ago. My family takes these stupid holiday celebrations way too seriously.”

“It’ll be fine. Better late than never. I’ll charm them by being my starstruck self.” Elizabeth bat her eyelashes at Meg and the younger girl rolled her eyes. “Of all the little sisters I could get for my last year, I can’t believe I got my favorite author’s granddaughter. What are the odds?”

“You picked me, didn’t you?”

“Maybe I saw the last name and took a chance. I was curious.” Meg looked over at the stunning redhead and she added, “I think it turned out rather well, don’t you?”

“Yeah, sure, whatever you say.” Meg grumbled, but Elizabeth just beamed as they approached a massive dark house.

“Holy shit.” Elizabeth mumbled as she leaned forward to get a better look. “It looks like something out of one of his books.”

“Just wait until you see the inside. I bet he’d give you the whole tour if you asked him. None of us really give a shit.”

Elizabeth feigned surprise, but she knew Meg wasn’t interested in the source of her family’s wealth. If her relatives were the slightest bit like she had described, Elizabeth deduced they wouldn’t be interested in Harlan’s books either.

Meg parked her car behind a slew of other chic vehicles, and Elizabeth let out a wolf whistle, “Damn, is your whole family successful?”

“No, my grandfather just gives everyone money.” Meg deadpanned, turning the key and pulling it from the ignition before tossing it into her bag. “Aunt Linda owns her own real estate company, Uncle Walt runs Grandpa’s publishing company.”

“So they are also super successful. Got it. Your idea of unsuccessful is not making ten million in royalties every year.” Elizabeth teased, fluffing out her thick bangs. “So what do I need to know before I go in?”

“Uncle Walt is intense, Uncle Richard is sleazy, my cousin Jacob is probably going to kill someone someday, but it’s okay, because he’s white and upper middle class.” Elizabeth snorted, then covered her mouth, knowing it wasn’t funny. Meg took a deep breath and continued, “My grandfather is going to be your best friend, and his nurse Marta is basically family. Aunt Linda is rigid but Aunt Donna doesn’t have a personality, so they kind of balance out. You might see my Great Nana, but she doesn’t talk, so don’t worry about her. And you know my mom of course.”

“Yes, love Joni.” Elizabeth hummed through her smile, “Is that everyone?”

“Everyone who’s going to show up.” Meg retorted, pushing open her door, then looking over her shoulder, “If it gets to be too much, say you need to use the bathroom. Text me and I’ll come rescue you.”

Elizabeth pushed open her own door and swung out, looking over the roof and calling, “I think I’ll be okay. I’m an adult.”

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you.” Meg sing-songed as she led Elizabeth up to the front door. As she pushed it open she called loudly, “Hey, sorry we’re late!”

“About damn time you showed up!” A man’s voice called from farther in the mansion.

“That would be Walt.” Meg mumbled as a mousy looking man with a cane came around the corner. Meg gave a short wave and walked toward him, casually gesturing to her friend, “This is Lizzie. She’s my Big Sister from college. She’s a big fan of Grandpa’s books.”

“Is that so?” Walt asked as he looked Elizabeth up and down with a grin, “Well I run the publishing company. We’re hoping to bring the books to the big screen in the next couple of years. You’d like that, right?”

“Uh, yeah, I guess. As long as they were done well. There’s nothing worse than a bad book to movie transition.” Elizabeth looked over her shoulder uncomfortably as she saw Meg’s mother walk into the room, “Oh, hi Joni!”

“Hiii Lizzie, how are you, honey?” Joni slurred as she wrapped the girl in an awkward, one armed hug. She held out her wine glass to the side and swayed a little as she pulled away, “I’m so glad you could join us today! Come on, let me introduce you to everyone-”

“That’s really not necessary Mom, I’m sure she doesn’t need to- okay.” Meg was ignored and Joni steered Lizzie toward Harlan’s study, where the author was speaking with his eldest daughter.

Lizzie’s eyes widened a little when Harlan Thrombey, the Harlan Thrombey, looked up at her with a smile. Joni shoved Lizzie forward, and the redhead was suddenly very aware that Meg hadn’t joined her, “Hi Dad, this is Lizzie, she’s Meg’s friend from Amherst. She’s part of the Big Sister program for the underclassmen.”

“Nice to meet you Lizzie.” Harlan said as he reached out and shook her hand, “This is my daughter, Linda, and my new nurse, Marta.” He gestured to a small Latina woman who waved shyly from the chair she was sitting in, filling a syringe with medicine for the older man.

“Dad, Lizzie is such a huge fan of your books. I’m sure she’d love to chat with you about them. She just couldn’t stop gushing about you when I met her during Welcome Weekend.” Joni giggled until she drowned herself out by downing her wine, “I’m going to get a refill. Linda, you want anything? Lizzie? Dad?”

“No, I think we’re fine. Thank you.” Linda said sharply with a tight lipped smile. She tilted her head to study the pale girl, but didn’t say anything for a long moment before asking, “Are you old enough to drink?”

“I’m twenty three.” Lizzie answered softly, playing with the ends of her hair and waiting to see if the white-haired businesswoman would interrogate her further.

Linda stared up at her from her spot perched on the desk, and her smile grew a little, “What do you study?”

“Writing. I’d like to be author someday.”

Linda turned to Harlan with a knowing smile, but his smirk didn’t change, “We still have some time before lunch is ready. I’ll leave you two to talk then.” Linda stood and left Harlan’s study, pulling the door closed behind her.

“Would you like me to leave as well, Mr. Thrombey?” The nurse asked, but Harlan just shook his head and squished his face, disapproving of her suggestion.

“Call me Harlan, Marta, we’ve talked about this. And no, you can stay, she can stay, right, Lizzie?”

“Of course, I- yeah, I’m just really honored to meet you!” Lizzie gushed as she took a seat across from Harlan, “I’m such a huge fan! The Needle Game is what made me want to go into writing... the twist in the end, where the body had been stored in the luggage compartment right below them the whole time. Your writing was beyond brilliant.”

Harlan chuckled as Marta smiled softly, carefully inserting the needle into the man’s lower arm. “Well, I appreciate that, Lizzie. What do you consider my weakest work?”

“Excuse me?” She asked abruptly, turning back to Harlan after studying the wooden figurines emerging from his study walls. Her mouth hung open for a moment, unsure of how to respond, “I think they are all wonderful...”

“But I want to know which one you think is the weakest.” Harlan challenged and Lizzie huffed, drawing her brows in frustration. Harlan just smiled and leaned his arm on his desk to get closer to her, “I want your honest opinion, as a fan, because an author is only as good as his worst work.”

“If I had to choose, and I hate that you’re making me,” Lizzie looked past Harlan out his study window at the sprawling grounds beyond, “I guess I’d say Nick of Time. I didn’t feel it was realistic. The writing was great, but the plot was contrived. I don’t believe Maggie would kill Nick in the end, after everything they went through.”

“But she wasn’t happy.” Harlan argued, holding the young woman’s gaze, “You would have written her as a martyr?”

“Yes.” Lizzie answered boldly, her smile growing, “I think it would have made the ending more devastating. That she murdered her in-laws but in the end she was still trapped.”

Harlan nodded thoughtfully, taking her opinion to heart, “Interesting. That’s why I asked.”

“I have a lot of thoughts. I wrote a lot of book reports.” Lizzie retorted, looking to Marta as the woman stood to leave the room, “I should probably head back out. Meg’s going to wonder where I’ve gone.”

“Go explore the house. I’ll give you a proper tour later in the day.” Harlan promised and Lizzie took that as her cue to leave.

When she opened the door, she practically walked into a brick wall of a man: tall, dark, and terribly handsome with an ugly scowl painted across his perfect face.

“Who the hell are you?” He snapped as he shrugged out of his jacket and handed it off to Lizzie, “Take care of this for me, will you?”

“I don’t work here.” Lizzie stammered, completely in shock as the man shoved past her. Her shock turned to anger and she dropped the brown trench coat on the floor. “I’m not your maid.”

Lizzie turned on her Jimmy Choo heels and stormed off to find Meg down the hall with her family. “Hey, how did it- what happened?” Meg asked frantically as Lizzie huffed and simmered, looking back over her shoulder.

“Tall, dark hair, huge ass- jerk.” Lizzie caught herself and Joni swallowed down another glass of wine, raising it in recognition.

“Asshole honey, you met Ransom. He’s an asshole.”

“Sweetheart, what did he say to you?” Linda questioned, suddenly a hundred times softer than she’d been before.

Lizzie groaned, feeling the color drain from her face at all the attention she was receiving, “It’s fine, really. He just didn’t realize I was a guest.”

“Ransom!” Linda yelled and another blonde woman that Lizzie hadn’t met yet shrunk into the corner as Joni poured herself another glass. Linda looked to a man Lizzie guessed was her husband and whispered something in his ear before yelling again, “Ransom!”

“What?” He screamed back as he stormed into the room, holding his coat over his arm until his eyes fell on Lizzie. His scowl turned to a wicked grin and he scoffed, “Oh I’m sorry? Did I offend you? Here, let me pretend like I care.” Ransom strode toward Lizzie and she stood her ground, keeping her mouth shut as he stopped inches from her, staring down his sharp nose at her freckled face. He grabbed her hand and kissed it, then dropped it and handed her his coat. “Now, can you take care of this for me? I’m going to get a drink.”

Linda and Richard chastised the man as he swept out of the room toward the kitchen while Joni yelled at the couple for raising such a terrible son. A frazzled woman in her forties scurried up to Lizzie and took Ransom’s jacket without a word, but Lizzie barely noticed.

She wasn’t sure if she was more confused or conflicted. She wanted to steer clear of that horrible man, but, part of her wanted to understand what made him tick.

#knives out #knives out fanfic #ransom drysdale #ransom drysdale x ofc #knives out fanfiction

15 notes · View notes

dib-shit · 5 years

Text

Zim Takes a Fuckin’ Nap

Word count: 2.9k

Pairings implied: ZaSr, TaTr (very subtle), DaGrr (Dib x Gretchen). All can be seen as platonic too.

Warnings: Quite a bit of swearing but nothing derogatory, and a quick reference to furries, courtesy of Skoodge’s fashion taste.

Characters: Zim, Skoodge, Dib, Gaz, Tak, Gretchen, and Gir

Synopsis: Zim’s feeling pretty out of it, huh? Maybe he needs sleep. Wait, Irkens don’t sleep, do they?

A/N: I originally started this while at the DMV waiting to get my first ID. It’s way longer than it should be, especially since I only wrote it so that Zim could say one thing. Anyway, hope you like it I guess. It’s my first fanfic I’ve ever published, even if it’s a shitpost so here goes nothing. Criticisms welcome if you have ‘em!

_________________________________________

Five years. It’s been five years since Zim came to this hell hole of a planet. Five years since Zim began his never-ending attempts to hold this planet in his grasp. Five years since Zim met his absolute worst enemy. Four years since Zim discovered he was living with his best friend. Three years since his best friend attended Skool with Zim. Two years since Tak came back to Earth. One year since Zim’s worst enemy became his worst friend… one year since Zim discovered the truth about his mission.

Zim, Skoodge, Tak, and Dib were all attending the same shit hole Skool in their Junior year. One more year after this and none of them would ever have to bother with this nonsense again. Except for Dib. Apparently, he has plans for more education after what was legally required. Zim didn’t get this. The Dib was already a moron, there was no fixing that.

Zim also didn’t understand why Tak was even bothering on coming. She even completes every assignment with flying colors. What was the point? Irkens already had their education jammed into their PAKs moments after hatching. Unknown to Zim, Tak was actually trying to distract herself with skoolwork from something that was eating away at her from the inside. But that’s a whole other story.

Zim groaned as the History teacher droned on about whatever it was he talked about. Dib had shown him in the past that human history isn’t as boring as it seems, it’s just that the education system cuts out a lot of the interesting and sometimes crucial information. So far the only thing Zim gathered from this class on “U.S. History” was that a particular breed of humans were the absolute worst of all of them. These humans had a history of taking whatever the hell they wanted from others, and then ruining those other lives as they go. Dib says that these people, which seems to be the perspective the shitty, sugarcoated textbook is going off of, are “White People”.

Zim placed his chin on his desk as the lesson drove on. He stared at the board until the words didn’t look like words anymore. His eyelids began to feel heavy for some reason. He closed his eyes. His mind seemed to fade away when suddenly he snapped back to reality. Oop there goes gravity. He jerked so hard he nearly fell off his seat. Some of the students gave him puzzled looks, but most of them have gotten used to Zim’s bullshittery.

What the FUCK was that!?!?? He thought. It felt like his body was trying to shut down or some shit. He continued to struggle with this until class let out. Fortunately, it was the last period so he quickly began his trail to the base.

As he walked, he heard footsteps coming behind him, sounding short and out of breath. Skoodge ran up behind him, having to run quite a bit to catch up to him.

“What the hell took you so long?!” He asked. Skoodge, catching his breath, answered. “Got held up with the really large muscle kid. He doesn’t like me for whatever reason”

“Did you blow him up? I would have blown him up.”

“Well no… that would cause a lot of problems. Also, that’s illegal Zim… remember what we said about trying to be normal citizens?”

“No. YOU said that. I would never agree to stupid laws.”

“I know.” Skoodge sighed.

Skoodge had actually grown fond of the Planet. It was frustrating how dumb these humans were sometimes, but life was simpler. Nicer. Not only that but the fashion in the thrift stores were perfect for Skoodge. It was all he ever wore. At the moment he was wearing a pair of very bright surf shorts, along with a shirt that said “I love chubby furries” He had no idea what that meant, he just liked the picture of the fat dog person on it. It was possible that this was the reason he got stopped by Chunk after school.

They reached the neon green house and walked inside to be greeted by a rocket zooming straight into Zim’s gut, knocking him onto the floor. The robot stood up, hugged Skoodge, and then sat on the couch in a very calm manner. Zim was able to get back onto his feet, glared at the robot for a bit as Skoodge giggled a bit, and then removed his contacts and wig. Skoodge soon followed after and they sat on the couch together to watch whatever cursed programming the robot was watching.

“How did class go for you?” Skoodge asked him.

“eh.” Zim shrugged.

There was a moment of silence, then he spoke again.

“I’ve been having trouble keeping my eyes open lately. I think I got poisoned by that demon Moose we dealt with a few days ago.” Zim said.

“Uh… what do you mean keeping your eyes open? You just… keep them open??” Skoodge said with concern in his voice.

Any further questioning would only get grunts from Zim. Skoodge then turned to him and saw that Zim’s eyes were closed, and he seemed unconscious.

“ZIM?!?” Skoodge yelled.

Zim jolted back into consciousness and screamed back “WHAT!?”

“You did the thing!”

“What thing?!?”

“You know the… oh never mind.”

Zim probably would have fallen out of consciousness again had Dib not called Zim’s phone. How Zim had a cellphone plan is beyond me but whatever.

“Hey is Skoodge there with you?” Dib asked.

“Yeh.”

“You two wanna come over or whatever? Tak came to hang out with Gaz, and Gretchen’s family stayed home for sabbath so she’s coming over too. I don’t know, it could help us bond better or whatever”

Skoodge, listening in, started nodding his head. He was actually good friends with Gretchen. He hung out with her at the library even before she got the courage to start talking to Dib again. That, and he actually got along with pretty much everyone.

Zim made a face similar to a scrunched up sea sponge, but told Dib they would come over.

“Also, please don’t bring Gir guys. There’s still damage in the walls from last time.” Dib then said goodbye and hung up.

Zim groaned and slowly slid himself off the couch, onto the floor, and then stood up. Skoodge went to the cabinet, grabbed a bunch of candy and snacks, and said he was ready to go. After arguing about whether to share their snacks with the others, and Skoodge somehow winning the argument (thanks to Gir screaming in his defense), they headed out to the human’s household.

…

Zim seemed to forget about the weird shutdowns while he was busy trying to beat Dib’s ass in Smash Bros. Zim refused to stick with one character so he had to readjust to the move sets almost every round, which really didn’t help his goal. It also didn’t help that they were also playing against Gaz, who made it very hard to survive more than a minute. After many rounds of various video games between the group, they finally decided to settle down with a Movie and then sleep over. It wasn’t like Professor Membrane would give a shit, he was never home.

The other two times they did this, the Irkens in the group would either just stay up playing more games and watching movies, or they would leave. The species wasn’t known to sleep. They are able, but there was no need. Dib compared it to the gems in Steven Universe. Zim would agree but first, he would have to admit that he watches the show along with Skoodge.

This time was going to be different.

The pull of unconsciousness was tugging at Zim again. Throughout the movie, he tried to combat it by jerking his body suddenly as to re-alert himself. Occasionally he would yell out, which quickly got on the others’ nerves.

“Zim what the fuck is your problem?!” Gaz eventually asked, although she didn’t care that much, she just wanted him to shut up.

“WELL WHAT THE FUCK IS YOUR PROBLEM?!?!” Zim screeched back at her, which he immediately regretted upon seeing Gaz’s reaction.

Before any damage could be done, Tak preemptively held Gaz’s arm back, knowing pissing Zim off would only result in a shit-fest. Dib, having previously been obsessed with Zim’s every move when they were enemies, somehow did not notice his rival was a bit off until now.

Avoiding any more interaction with Zim and risking another blowup, Dib asked Skoodge to join him in the kitchen and asked the short Irken what was going on.

“You mean the yelling? Dib, you should know that’s normal for him” Skoodge stated matter-of-factly. Dib stared at him for a second before responding.

“N-… No Skoodge, I mean the other thing… and wh- what the fuck are you wearing?”

“What, my shirt? Why?” Skoodge asked.

Dib looked like he was somehow holding a stroke.

“… Nevermind. Back to the issue at hand. It looks almost like he’s… falling asleep or something?? Did Zim eat something bad or??…” Dib trailed off, not really sure how he was going to finish that sentence.

“Falling… asleep? I never really considered that. But we don’t sleep, our PAKs sorta recharge as they go.” Skoodge said.

Dib sighed. “I know. you guys have explained this multiple times, but what if something happened and now-” Dib stopped for a moment. Something clicked in his head. His eyes widened.

“Skoodge… how much does Zim remember the demon moose incident?”

“I don’t know… he knows it happened and he knows it did something to him” Skoodge responded.

“The kick. The moose kicked him and it hit his PAK… Zim’s PAK must’ve gotten damaged. I bet that’s what’s happening.” Dib told him.

“What???” Skoodge was confused.

“The demon moose fucked up Zim’s PAK so now he doesn’t recharge very well. That’s why he’s so tired. He needs sleep.” Dib explained. He was also beginning to realize what was going to have to come next.

They needed to get Zim to go to sleep. It was going to be hard, but the little shit needed a nap. It was going to be like trying to put a gremlin to sleep.

The movie was over. Zim had passed out again. Dib gathered everyone else in the kitchen and explained what was going on.

“Why can’t we just leave him there?” Gaz said.

“Because he’s going to wake up again and try to avoid going to sleep. He needs to know what’s going on so he can get proper rest.” Skoodge responded. It’s an absolute mystery how Zim was able to get by at all without him for some time.

“We could always tase him and just throw a blanket on him.” Tak proposed. She still had some bitterness towards him for ruining her life plans.

“We’re not doing that Tak,” Skoodge stated.

Gretchen spoke up, “Why don’t we just… tell Zim? Explain to him, and then help him get to sleep?”

The others stared at her for a moment, unwilling to admit they were overthinking this a little. It couldn’t be that hard, could it? They were about to get an answer.

Waking up Zim was a mistake. Naturally, he screamed and ended up slapping Dib as a “reflex” although he had to turn around and reach for Dib and Skoodge was the one that actually shook him awake. Skoodge tried to start his explanation but Zim was NOT having it. He got enough bullshit already about being a “defective” so another layer on top of that, to have a PAK that needed him to sleep every now and then, that did not sound fun.

“Zim, listen, it’s okay. You just need to let yourself sleep. you’re already doing it bit by bit but you need to fall all the way.” Skoodge told his friend.

“Yeah, but not on our couch,” Gaz added.

“I can get a sleeping bag. Skoodge is welcome to stay too. I know Tak already is ‘cuz she’s got some project she’s working on with Gaz or something.” Dib said, before leaving the room. When he got the sleeping bag, he decided to grab another for Skoodge… maybe he could try sleeping too? It would be awkward just sitting there all night, and he knew the two of them enough that if Zim was doing something that involved letting his guard down, there was no way Skoodge was leaving his side. Dib would have liked it better if this was done at their base and not in his living room but with Gir there, it probably wouldn’t work out very well.

By the time Dib returned, Gaz and Tak were in the backyard working on Tak’s ship (which Dib had reluctantly returned to her). He could hear faint static from the communicator again. Tak must still be trying to connect to whoever she’s looking for on Meekrob again. Gretchen was sitting on the couch looking at memes on her phone. Skoodge was sitting by Zim on the other side of the couch, still trying to coax him into sleeping, with Zim still refusing.

“Zim isn’t budging… but Skoodge is getting somewhere I think.” Gretchen updated Dib. “By the way, Gaz agreed to let me sleep in her room since the living room will be occupied, and your room would be a little awkward.” Suddenly she remembered that she had to text Keef… her parents thought she was staying at his house for the night, not the Membranes’. As she got up to talk on the phone in private in another room, Dib took her place on the couch.

Dib unrolled both sleeping bags, then stood there awkwardly watching Zim and Skoodge argue. There was no way Zim was going to agree to this with their current tactic. So he proposed to them his earlier idea of Skoodge also sleeping, hoping that would make Zim more comfortable. Upon hearing this, Zim was silent for a bit, looked at Skoodge, then Dib, back to Skoodge, then the floor.

“Wait… Gir!” Zim finally spoke.

“Don’t change the subject dude, you need to fucking sleep!! Gir is fine!” Dib yelled at him.

Just then there was a loud single knock on the door. But really it sounded like someone crashed into the door, followed by multiple little knocks.

“Who could that be knockin’ at my door?!” Dib said in a song-like tune, but also nervous because it was like, 2 in the morning. Seriously who the hell…

“Go away. Don’t come here no more…” Dib finished the lyric under his breath as he answered.

Dib was greeted by a small green dog who looked up at him silently, called Dib a bitch, then walked inside. Dib didn’t even react… by this point he was used to this sort of thing.

“GIR, NO SWEaRiNg!!!” Zim yelled as Dib shut the door behind the robot.

The commotion brought Gretchen back into the room. She took one look at Gir and already picked up on what was going on. Wherever Zim and Gir are together, screaming is sure to follow. She walked over to the little robot to pat his head and scooped him up like a baby.

“What are you doing here Gir? We told you to stay at home.” Skoodge asked, hoping this wasn’t going to make the argument with Zim more difficult.

Gir gave puppy dog eyes more than he normally did, ears drooping and everything. “The pig left… and I was looooonely,” Gir replied with tears in his voice, then suddenly perked up and happily said, “SO I cAMe HERE!!!.”

“Hey Gir, do want to take a nap? Zim is going to try to sleep.” Gretchen calmly told him, still carrying him like a toddler on her hip.

“Yeah!! Sleepytime!! I’ll help get Zim to sleep!” Gir then pulled out a hammer and held it up like he was going to hit Zim with it.

“NO NO NO NO!! GIR DON’T!!” Everyone else screamed. Gir looked at them with a smile still, as Skoodge carefully took the hammer from Gir, and set it in the kitchen. Maybe it was time to talk to him about what’s possible in cartoons… and not in real life.

“Damn, I thought Gir would be on my side… he usually hates having to rest,” Zim grumbled. Dib rolled his eyes and wondered if Zim had actually contacted Gir at some point to get him out of this.

There was a silence for a while. Skoodge looked at Zim and simply said “please… it’ll help. I promise.”

“eeeeeeUGaAAaaaaHHHHGH… FINE!! I’ll take a fuckin’ nap or whatever.” Zim loudly complied. “But only if Skoodge stays. I still don’t trust any of you.” Skoodge nodded in understanding as everyone gave a sigh of relief

God… took long enough, Dib thought. He was surprised it didn’t involve more damage to his house. Whatever. The green bastard was going to finally sleep. Wait… did he know how to sleep? Eh, he’ll figure it out, he’s basically been doing it already, he just had to let it happen.

The two Irkens got settled into the sleeping bags, and Dib tossed them some pillows. Gretchen set Gir between the bags, as he curled up and immediately passed out. They finally got comfortable, Dib turned out the lights, and Gretchen said goodnight. The two humans were about to make their way upstairs when they heard a “Hm.” from Zim.

“What is it?” Skoodge whispered.

Zim made a smirk with his eyes still closed, as he was snuggled up in the poofy sleeping bag. “I’m a warm little bitch.”

The End

68 notes · View notes

thegeekcurmudgeon · 5 years

Text

From the trenches: Other Worlds 2019

Art by Lauren Kitching

As always, Austin’s own Other Worlds delivered a fantastic collection of top notch films. Of the 20 or so selections for this years festival, I managed to see 10 of them plus the live recording of the podcast Science Vs Fiction.

Here’s my quick recap.

Thursday

Dreamscape (35TH ANNIVERSARY SCREENING) LAUNCH FILM

The flawed, pioneering film, a staple of late 80s/early 90s cable, has aged well despite some terrible acting by pretty much everyone not named Sydow or Plummer.

Friday

Afterlife

The powerful, intelligent Dutch film Afterlife ponders the choices we make and the very perceptions of what we know to be true, while confirming that parents often make the most unreliable narrators of all. Sanaa Giwa delivers a virtuoso performance as the tortured Sam.

Afterlife also presages a common thread throughout the festival: the usage of time travel tropes.

Time After Time (40TH ANNIVER. SCREENING)

Another staple of 80s cable, Time After Time details the first ever fictional meeting of H. G. Wells and Jack the Ripper. The tense, intelligent film, deservedly so, is often lauded as on the true classics of time travel cinema. Malcom McDowell in one of his few heroic roles, David Warner at his creepiest best, and Mary Steenburgen in only her second screen appearance, ground the film with their excellent performances. Perhaps the only flaw lies in neophyte Nicholas Meyer’s direction, which at times feels like TV movie-of-the-week. Thankfully, his near perfect script overcomes any of the firs time director’s shortcomings.

The film was screened to honor Meyer, who was in attendance, with the Defender of the Universe Award. In the q&a following the film, Meyer revealed that Jenz-Luc Goddard’s legendary Alphaville served as an inspiration and scenes that were cut from the original screenplay showed up in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home.

Lake Michigan Monster

A big disappointment, the ludicrous Lake Michigan Monster has some genuinely funny moments but as is often the problem with movies of this ilk, it goes on too long and the jokes get tiresome.

I actually walked out on this one, which I very rarely do.

Saturday

I Am Human

I Am Human has everything an excellent documentary should: a fascinating subject shown in an intelligent and respectable manner. Directors Taryn Southern and Elena Gaby share the origins of the world’s first “cyborgs.” We become immersed within three people whose lives have been irrevocably altered by brain implants. The hopeful movie serves as a nice contrast to our increasingly bleak dyspotic reality.

LIVE FROM OTHER WORLDS FILM FEST – IT’S “SCIENCE VS FICTION”

The live taping of the Science Vs Fiction podcast featured Time After Time and a discussion on time travel tropes. Film critic Scott Weinberg and Steven DeGennaro, a doctor of astrophysics, entertained and informed with film and physics tidbits. Both men enjoyed the movie but had some serious questions about the time travel elements. The interaction with the audience primarily dealt with naming time travel movies and various opinions.

Dead Dicks

One of the best films of the festival, Dead Dicks is a creative, top notch sci-horror hybrid filled with existential dread, humor, and a fascinating brother-sister dynamic. This superior Cronebergesque film offers an excellent meditation on depression. Highly recommended!

The Ascent

Any positive thoughts of the Saturday festival garnered by the first two films were quickly squashed by the terrible The Ascent. This soulless film breaks one of the central tenants of action filmmaking, it is dull. Littered with stereotypes and predictability, the action scenes all have the feel of a poorly executed video game, with excessive use of first person viewpoints and lack of clarity as to what exactly is going on. The ascent of the title itself delivers little originality either. Those you expect to die, do and those who you don’t, survive. The core “war is hell” message is clumsily and amateurishly delivered. Many, many films have delivered similar storylines with far superior results. Easily the worst film of the festival.

Volition

Thankfully, the next flick was vastly superior. Initially a noir about a man afflicted with clairvoyance, Volition morphs into a bug nutty time travel thriller. While things get away from director and co-screenwriter Tony Dean Smith, the viewer won’t care as the picture delivers the goods with some excellent and creative scenes. The flaws will largely go unnoticed until the final credits roll. A great way to end my Saturday.

Sunday

Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country

One of the most underrated of all Trek films delivered again. Preceded and followed by a lengthy discussion with Nicholas Meyer.

After the film, Meyer’s signed copies of his new Sherlock Holmes book The Adventure of The Peculiar Protocols.

After We Leave

Another disappointment, the meandering and seemingly pointless After We Leave joined The Ascent as one of the worst films of the weekend. The predictable movie was unmemorable.

As I was very tired, I almost decided to call it quits following After We Leave, but very glad I decided to return for a last film.

The Final Land

The German filmmaker Marcel Barion, in his first film, crafts an outstanding story, full of wonder and paranoia. Taking place primarily within the confines of a tiny old spaceship, conflicts erupt as two disparate men struggle to find a new home. The Final Land is a brilliant atmospheric film that incorporates the best of elements of science fiction, both hard and soft. Barion achieves magnificent, mindblowing vistas from outside the ship using only traditional effects. With nary a dull moment and an ideal science fiction ending, The Final Land comes highly recommended!

That’s wrap on another excellent Other Worlds festival.

Only about 350 days until the next one. Can’t wait!

From the trenches: Other Worlds 2019 was originally published on The Geek Curmudgeon

#dreamscape #other worlds #review

3 notes · View notes

jrubalcaba · 6 years

Text

Can’t Help Falling In Love - Ch. 21

Can't Help Falling In Love Chapter 21 - A Steve x OFC fanfiction

author: jrubalcaba

featuring: OFC Evelyn “Evie” Rogers x Steve Rogers

word count: 4600 words

rating: PG

warnings: talk of smut, but no actual smut

A/N: credit to @suz-123 for the character of Alice! Thank you to @celeb-fest for her beta work!

I could sense the light shining in the window through my eyelids. I rolled over, feeling for Steve’s body when I encountered cold sheets. Sighing, I opened my eyes to search for my husband.

Husband. God I love calling him that. I glanced around for something to put on since Steve had ripped all of my nightgowns. Upon finding nothing, I grabbed a fluffy robe and slipped it on before wandering around to find Steve. I finally found him standing at our balcony, a towel wrapped around his waist, his broad torso bare.

“There you are,” I called out, wrapping my arms around his waist and settled my cheek against his back. He turned around to face me and the tortured look on his face shook me to my core.

“We go home today,” he stated in a flat tone. His eyes were red around the edges and he kept sniffling, evidence that he had been crying for a while before I woke up.

“Yeah we do,” I agreed softly. “You okay?” I asked him, reaching up to cradle his face in my hands. He sniffled again and tears began to slide down his cheeks.

“No. Do we have to go home now? Can’t we stay longer?” he begged. I chuckled humorlessly, knowing his reasoning behind his question. The longer we stay here, the longer before he has to say goodbye to Bucky for a long time. But therein lies the rub; the longer we’re here, the longer he goes without seeing Bucky at all. I wiped his tears away.

“Yes baby, we do. Don’t you want to see our house?” I smiled up at him, hoping to get his mind off Bucky.

“Yeah,” he answered after a brief silence. I scowled up at him.

“Geez don’t sound so excited.” I stepped out of his arms and turned to go start packing. He followed me back to our bedroom and grabbed my wrist, pulling me to his chest.

“Hey, I am excited. I’m just not looking forward to saying goodbye to Bucky again.” He placed the tip of his finger under my chin and tilted my head up. “I do want to see our house. Honest.” I frowned.

“You just want to see Bucky. I’m hip to your game mister. C’mon let’s pack so I can get you back to the real love of your life.” I stomped over to my suitcase and began going through everything, making sure I had everything I arrived with. Steve wrapped his arms around my middle and hugged me.

“Evie, don’t be like that. You know I love you more than anything. I can’t wait to start our life together on our own,” he argued. I shrugged him off.

“You’re a terrible liar Steven Grant. Your nightmares are getting worse. All I hear is ‘no Bucky’ or ‘please don’t take Bucky’ or ‘leave Bucky alone’ all night long. Starting to wonder if maybe you married the wrong person.” His hands dropped and I felt him step away. I finished packing before grabbing my clothes for the day and turned around to find him glaring at me. I may have been feeling bold before, but that was all gone now. The look on his face was the most intense I’ve seen in awhile.

“Evelyn, I’ve been wanting to marry you for years. You are the one I want to spend the rest of my life with. Don’t ever question that.” He stalked forward and cradled my face in his hands. “Yes, I love Bucky. He’s my best friend and the brother I never had. He will always have a special place in my life, but you are my everything and that will never change.” He took a deep breath before continuing. “I’m sorry I make you feel like Bucky means more to me than you do. He’s been a part of my life for so long that having to say goodbye, even for a short time, is incredibly difficult.” He sat on the bed and motioned for me to join him.

“I understand that he means a lot to you, but it’s not goodbye for forever. You’ll still see him, just not everyday.” He sighed, his shoulders slumping.

“I know. It’s just hard to let him go. I worry about him so much.” I rubbed his back as I kissed his cheek.

“Bucky’s got Alice now. Let her worry about him. You know she won’t let anything happen to him. Now, I’m going to jump in the shower, and you’re gonna join me.” He smirked at me before throwing me over his shoulder and marching into the bathroom.

“As you wish, Mrs. Rogers.”

After our shower (that was twice as long because apparently I didn’t get ‘clean enough’ the first time around), we finally got dressed and our bags packed. The joy of being able to use Tony’s private plane was that we didn’t have to go through all the crap at the airport, so we boarded and got comfortable for the long flight. We knew Tony had some sort of surveillance, so we painstakingly kept our hands to ourselves, not even daring to kiss for fear we might not contain our hormones.

Finally, the plane touched down and as we disembarked, I saw Bucky waiting on the tarmac next to his truck. We approached him, and as Steve got into arms reach he enveloped Bucky in a hug. I sighed as I stowed my suitcase in the bed before walking past them.

“I’ll give you two lovebirds some privacy and the front seats as I climb in back,” I snarked playfully. They paid me no mind as they continued to hug each other. I rolled my eyes and got in the back seat, pulling out my phone. I didn’t really use my phone a lot while we were gone, what with all the fun and ‘beach blanket boinko’. I was scrolling through my social media apps when Bucky and Steve got in the truck as well.

“Nice to see you, Evie,” Bucky sheepishly greeted. I leaned forward so he could see my face.

“Oh, you talkin’ to me? I’m surprised you even noticed I was here,” I snapped. I leaned back in my seat, making eye contact with him in the rear view mirror. A silent agreement was made without Steve being the wiser. The drive back to the Tower was silent, all parties knowing what was about to happen.

Bucky turned into the parking garage and parked. We all slowly got out, wanting to prolong the inevitable goodbyes. We got on the elevator and headed up to where the team was waiting for us. The door opened and we were met with a chorus of ‘Welcome Home!’ from everyone. We went through and hugged everyone, sitting down to chat for a bit.

“So, how was Bora-Bora? I've never been there, but I’ve heard great things about it,” Sam asked. Steve and I shared a smile before he answered.

“It was amazing. Absolutely spectacular. Thank you again, Tony.” Tony nodded at us.

“Oh it was no problem. Tell me though, is your little...hut on the water still standing?” He asked with his trademark smirk. Everyone turned to us expectantly, wanting to know as well. I chuckled at Tony’s boldness.

“Yes, it’s still standing. But I will say this, it’s not from lack of trying.” Everyone laughed until we heard a gagging noise. Bruce was making a disgusted face. “Oh. Sorry dad.” He shook his head, as if he was trying to shake the words out of his head.

“Yeah that’s the kind of thing a father wants to hear about; his daughter’s honeymoon, which was apparently filled with rounds of vigorous sex with her super-soldier husband. Excuse me while I go vomit.” We all burst out laughing again as I grabbed Bruce’s hand to keep him from leaving.

“What exactly did you think would happen? We’d just sit there and stare at the walls?” He glared at me, clearly not appreciating the fun I was poking at him. “Okay we’ll steer the conversation away from sex. Deal?” He nodded and the topic was switched.

“You guys ready to see your house?” Scott asked. We nodded enthusiastically.

“Oh yes. The last time Steve saw it was when they had poured the foundation and we had put our handprints in it. Last time I saw it was when they were in the process of framing everything. So yeah, we’re excited to see it all completed.” I beamed at Steve, ready to start our new life together. Bucky stood up then, making a point to check the time.

“We should probably get going, cause Alice and I have to drive back and I don’t like being out late at night.” My smile vanished, along with Steve’s as we realized it was time to say goodbye to everyone. We stood up as well and began our goodbyes. I started with Bruce, hugging him tightly.

“I’ll come up to visit you soon, I promise. Stay safe,” he whispered in my ear. It was incredibly hard not to cry, but like I had told Steve earlier, it’s not for forever. “Love you Evie. Don’t forget that.”

“I love you too dad,” I whispered back, inhaling quickly to keep the tears from falling. I could see everyone saying their goodbyes over Bruce’s shoulder, but I didn’t want to let go. “I’ll see you soon and you better stay safe too. I mean it.” He chuckled before letting me go, wiping a couple tears away. He went to say goodbye to Steve as I made my way through everyone else.

“Rogers, you better keep my girl safe. I find out anything happened to her, I’m gonna kick your ass,” We all heard Bruce threaten. Steve pulled back to look him in the eye.

“Dr. Banner, I swore in front of you, our friends, and multiple gods that no harm will come to her and I intend on keeping that promise.” I walked up and Steve put his arm around me. “But if anything does happen to her on my watch, you better come kick my ass.” My two favorite men shook hands and I walked with my husband to the elevator, Bucky and Alice right behind us.

We waved goodbye one last time as the door shut before it descended to the parking garage. We were all silent as we got back into Bucky’s truck and headed out to our house. The drive was long, but I could tell by the way Steve was squeezing my hand that it would never be long enough.

“Alright you two, there’s your house up ahead,” Alice pointed out after a while. Steve and I both looked out the front windshield and my jaw dropped. It was beautiful, even better looking than the stock photos.

I looked over at Steve and he was just as shocked as I was. Bucky pulled up to the garage door and parked so we could all get out. Bucky turned to us with a grin.

“Welcome home. Here’s your house key. We’ll hang back while you take a quick look,” he instructed while taking it out of his pocket and handing it to Steve. I grabbed his hand as we walked to the front door. Steve unlocked it, but before I could step inside, he threw his arm out to stop me.

“Tradition states that the husband must carry his wife across the threshold upon entering their home for the first time,” he explained. I chuckled at his antics. Mr. Traditional. He held his arms out to me. “So, if you don’t mind, Mrs. Rogers.” I rolled my eyes but grinned anyway as I let him scoop me up and carry me inside.

Oh my god. I have no words for how amazing everything turned out. The paint colors, the flooring, the cabinets, you name it. It was exactly as I saw it in my head. I’m so glad I left Bucky and Alice in charge of everything.

We made it to the kitchen and I had to stop and catch my breath as Steve set me down. This was my dream kitchen. Everything was top of the line and it looked incredible. I couldn’t wait to start cooking. Bucky and Alice walked in then, grinning.

“So, judging by the amazed looks on your faces, I take it that you like how everything turned out?” Bucky asked, amused. I grinned back before walking over and hugging him tightly.

“Yes, and we haven’t even seen the whole house! You guys did such a wonderful job decorating. Thank you so much!” I turned and gave Alice a hug as well, since it was more than likely her decorating skills on display than Bucky’s.

“Good. I’m glad you like it then,” she replied. “No need to thank me but I took the liberty of stocking your kitchen with food and the good kind of tea.” I gave her my best unimpressed look as she told there looking incredibly smug.

“Gee, thanks. ‘Cause we’re such big tea drinkers. You shouldn’t have,” I said with the flattest tone I could muster. She stuck her tongue out at me, making me laugh.

“Har har. It’s mainly for when we visit, since I am a tea drinker,” she retorted. I glanced over at Steve, and my heart sank. He and Bucky were over in the corner, both looking like they were at a funeral. I got Alice’s attention, and we grimaced.

“I know this is hard for them, but don’t you feel like maybe they’re with the wrong people?” I whispered. She shrugged as they both walked over to us.

“You know we can hear you, right?” Steve snapped. I rolled my eyes at him before stretching up to kiss his cheek.

“Yes I know. I was trying to lighten the mood a bit. Sorry,” I replied, holding my hands up in surrender. He pulled me to his chest, kissing the top of my head. “When do you guys need to leave to make it back to the Tower?” I asked Bucky and Alice, turning in Steve’s arms so my back was to his front.

“Well, I guess here shortly,” Bucky sighed dejectedly, looking down at Alice. “It’ll be dark somewhat soon, and although we’ve been driving out here quite a bit while you were gone, I’m still not familiar with the area.” He looked like a puppy that’s been kicked by its owner. We all stood there for a while, letting the gravity of the moment sink in. I stepped away from Steve and linked arms with Alice.

“We’re gonna step outside and give you two some privacy,” I said quietly, gently pulling her out the front door. We walked over to Bucky’s truck and I gave her a hug. “Thank you so much Alice. For everything. You’ve been such a lifesaver these past few months. Hell, since you guys came back from Wakanda really.” She shrugged it off, not wanting to take that much credit.

“Oh shut it. It was nothing,” she grumbled. We laughed before we heard gravel crunching and were joined by our men, both looking like they were never going to see each other again.

“You alright love?” Alice asked Bucky. He sniffed and nodded, trying to keep his composure. She rubbed his arm sympathetically, turning to Steve. “You okay Steve?” He nodded, wiping tears from his cheek. I rubbed his back soothingly, knowing what was about to come.

“Well, I guess you two better get going, so you make it home before dark,” I finally said after the four of us stood there in silence for a good while. I detached myself from Steve and pulled Bucky into a hug. “Take care of Alice, yeah?” I murmured in his ear. He squeezed me tightly, conveying everything he wasn’t able to say. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Steve and Alice hugging as well, and although I couldn’t hear him, I was certain that Steve was begging Alice to keep Bucky safe.

Bucky released me before turning to Steve and embracing him once again. The two men stood there in each other’s arms, not wanting to let the other go. It suddenly made me realize that the last time Bucky left Steve, that Bucky could remember, was when he was shipping out with the Army.

Finally, after what seemed like forever (but obviously not long enough in their eyes), they broke apart. I linked my arm with Steve’s as Alice and Bucky climbed into the truck and began to drive away, and I could feel Steve tensing up as if he wanted to chase after them. We waved until we could no longer see or hear the truck, but as I tugged on his arm to go back in the house, he wouldn’t move.

“Steve,” I called to him, even though he was right next to me. “C’mon baby. Let’s go back inside and finish exploring the house.” I watched him for a bit, realizing that he wasn’t going to move unless I gave him a really good reason to. An idea suddenly came to me and I grinned. “Hey baby, remember what I wore underneath my dress for the charity gala?” I asked as I stretched up to kiss his neck. He made a noise of contentment, understanding and desire as I continued my assault on every bit of skin I could reach. “I was thinking that I could go put it on, and then we could play a game of hide and seek,” I whispered as I nibbled on his earlobe. He pulled back and looked at me, and I could see his eyes were lust-blown.

“Hide and seek huh?” he replied huskily. Ding ding ding. We’ve got a winner. I gazed up at him through my eyelashes as I cupped him through his pants, causing him to hiss at the contact.

“Yeah, unless you wanna stay out here all night,” I teased. He grinned his wolfy grin and I ran for the front door, giggling as he scooped me up and ran up the stairs to our bedroom.

“You know, as much as I love seeing you in garters and stockings, I don’t think I can wait that long,” he confessed, placing me on our absolutely giant bed and climbing up my body.

“Well, I’ll have you know-” Steve silenced me with a searing kiss, which led to other things that effectively stopped my train of thought.

“Evie, baby, we gotta take a break. I’m exhausted,” Steve gasped, slumping back against the bed. I smirked to myself as I rolled off him and laid at his side. It’s not everyday I wear Captain America out. Mission accomplished.

“Alright fine. How about I make you something to eat and then we can go explore the rest of the house?” I offered. He nodded enthusiastically before getting out of bed to put his clothes back on. “You know, it’s a good thing we live all the way out here. No one will be able to see all of the hickies that you leave on me,” I grumbled, pulling on my own clothes.

He chuckled before smacking my ass on his way out the door. I giggled as I followed him down into the kitchen. Once I found everything I needed, I made both of us a club sandwich with pickles and chips on the side.

“Damn baby, that’s one of the best sandwiches I’ve ever had,” he complimented, rubbing his stomach. I smiled as I cleared both plates.

“I’m glad you enjoyed it. Come on, let's check out everything. I put a few things in that I think you will love.” I held my hand out for him to take and I led him to the big room, and I heard him gasp.

“We have our own movie theatre?” he asked in disbelief. I nodded.

“You have 70 years worth of movies to catch up on still, so why not do it in style?” He looked down at me and grinned.

“Thanks babe. Can’t wait to get started. What are the other surprises you have for me?” I couldn’t help but smile back at him as I led him to the next room.

“How about your own personal gym?” I countered, stepping aside as he checked the equipment out. “I had Bucky and Sam figure out which machines you liked best so I could put those in here. You gotta stay in shape somehow, right?” I smirked at him when he turned back to me.

“Wow. This is amazing. Thanks baby. I love it,” he said, walking to give me a hug. I pointed over his shoulder.

“Let's check out upstairs. We can see where our children will grow up.” We trudged up the staircase, loving the view out the windows. We went through all the rooms, stopping when Steve saw the garage out the window.

“Why is the garage so tall?” he asked. I shrugged.

“I dunno. I think it's storage room? Actually, I'm really confused so let's find out what's up there.” We ran downstairs, cutting through the mudroom and through the walkway to the garage. We opened the door and went up the stairs.

“Well howdy neighbors!” Bucky greeted us from the couch. I snuck a peek at Steve and the dumbfounded look on his face was priceless.

“Bucky?” Bucky laughed at the shock on his best friend’s face.

“Who were you expecting, Colonel Phillips?” he snickered. “Yes it’s me. Alice is here too.” She waved, a devilish smirk on her face. Steve turned to me, his jaw still open.

“Careful sweetheart. You’ll catch flies that way,” I chastised, using my index finger to shut his mouth. He recovered then, blinking rapidly.

“Evie, why are they here? We saw them leave.” He was completely lost.

“This is my wedding gift to you. You got me a house, so I got you Bucky,” I clarified. “I struggled trying to find you a wedding gift that was as amazing as a house.” I gave him a quick hug before going on. “Bucky and Alice are retiring with us. This is their half. They get to stay with us.” If there was ever a look of sheer joy, Steve’s face was it.

“Bucky gets to stay? Forever?” he asked incredulously. I nodded.

“Yes.”

Steve grabbed me in a tight hug before releasing me and grabbing ahold of Bucky. I could hear him start to gasp and whimper again, so Alice and I took advantage of the moment and snuck out, heading back to the kitchen.

“Well, that was a surprise well worth the wait,” Alice sighed. I grinned at her.

“Yes it was. You hungry at all? I could make you a sandwich,” I offered. She shook her head no.

“No we grabbed something to eat before we came back.” I nodded in understanding before grabbing a couple water bottles from the fridge and handed one to her. “Thanks. I was getting ready to ask for something to drink though,” she laughed. A teary-eyed Bucky and Steve came in after awhile, standing next to us and we hugged them tightly.

“You guys okay?” I asked them. They both nodded before smiling wide at me.

“We’re great, now that Stevie knows the big secret,” Bucky joked. Steve squeezed me, lifting me off the ground a bit before putting me down.

“How did I get so lucky to get such an amazing woman like you for a wife?” he wondered out loud, kissing the tip of my nose. “You literally got me my best friend. I love you so much. You have no idea how much this means to me. Thank you baby,” he crooned, kissing me deeply.

I grinned up at him. “I’m glad you like your gift.” I looked over at our friends before scrunching my face up and looking back at Steve. “There’s no need for me to return it, is there?” I asked jokingly. He frowned at me before shaking his head.

“No. A million times no. This is one gift that I am more than happy to keep.” We all chuckled at his words. “How about we go watch a movie on our movie screen?” I nodded before checking with Bucky and Alice, who also agreed.

“Awesome. Let me make some popcorn and find some other snacks while you guys pick out a movie and I’ll meet you there,” I offered. The three of them went to get comfy while I stated to prepare snacks. I found popcorn and stuck one in the microwave while I searched my kitchen to see where everything was put away at.

I found my serving tray and, after finding a six pack of beer in the fridge, added it to the tray, along with a soda for myself and another bottle of water for Alice. I found two big bowls and dumped one bag of popcorn in each before adding them to the tray as well.

Finally, I found some chocolate bars and licorice and threw them on as well before recalling my days as a waitress and carried everything over, not dropping a thing. I walked in the door and Steve jumped up to help me.

“Babe you could have asked for help,” he chastised as he grabbed the six pack and a bowl of popcorn and took it to the table that was set up in front of our seats. I snorted while I brought the tray to the table as well, before I handed Alice her water. She nodded at me in thanks while Bucky and Steve popped open their beers.

“So, what movie are we watching?” I asked, getting comfortable on my seat next to Steve, throwing the blanket he had found over our laps.

“Jurassic Park. That okay?” Bucky asked from beside Alice.

“Hell yeah it is. You two will be able to verify if that’s what the dinosaurs actually looked like, seeing as that you’re both super old,” I teased, causing Alice to choke on her water as she began to laugh. I joined her in my own laughter as Bucky flipped me off and Steve tickled my side, making me laugh even more.

“What’s that say about you then babe? That you like old men? You pervert,” he argues as he tickled me even more.

“Uncle!” I gasped, and he stopped his attack. I caught my breath before answering him. “No, it just means that I’m into 100 year old blonde super soldiers who can throw a shield like it’s a fuckin frisbee.” He chuckled before putting his arm around me and letting me snuggle into his side. He grabbed the remote and pressed the buttons to turn the screen on and to start the movie.

A few minutes into the movie I looked around at everything. Steve was happy, I was happy, and Bucky and Alice were happy. Life was perfect, and I couldn't wait to see what it had in store for us.

TAG LIST:

@suz-123 @avenger-nerd-mom @aglarelen @amaranthuspetals @amillionfandoms-onlyoneme @bad-wolf87 @bolontiku @brighterlightss @buckybarnesappreciationsociety @buckyywiththegoodhair @caplansteverogers @captainradicalpassion @caramell0w @celeb-fess @delicatecapnerd @doloreschanal @donnaintx @earinafae @etts21 @ghostssss @girlbehindthecameraposts @gramaeryebard @handshugging @jhangelface0523 @kimistry27 @liz-pbnz @loki-god-of-my-life @magellan-88 @marvel-trash07 @pegasusdragontiger @punkfrog @ruinerofcheese @ryverpenrad @sarahp879 @silver-starburst @the-real-kellymonster

#jrubalcaba #cant help falling in love #steve rogers #evie rogers

25 notes · View notes

frederator-studios · 7 years

Video

vimeo

Austen Payne - The Frederator Interview

Austen Payne is a budding dungeon master, a storyboard artist at Smiley Guy Studios in Toronto, and a bonafide Cool Kid™. “One Hell of a Party,” the short she created with a team of fellow Seneca Animation 3rd years, is enjoying a glitter-glue coated festival run: it nabbed the Golden Reel Award at Nevada International Film Fest and Best Canadian Short at Toronto After Dark. “I didn’t know that was a category!” - Austen.

The positive response is no surprise to us - “One Hell of a Party” is one hell of a student film. Check it out above - then give a looksie to our convo with Austen, where we discuss the artistic merits of “Baman Piderman,” D&D as a crash course in storytelling, and the underrated genius of never giving up.

So what drew you (heh) to animation?

In high school, I was really into art and comics - and then I took a class on filmmaking, and I really loved it. Once I realized that animation was like the marriage of drawing and filmmaking, I was hooked. I went to Sheridan for fine arts for 2 years, then to Seneca for their 2D animation program.

What inspired “One Hell of a Party”?

In 1st year, I got sick with the flu, and one night really couldn’t sleep with a fever. So I was just laying awake, being really nice to myself and thinking about how I would never manage to come up with a whole story - I always think in shots, or scenes, but hadn’t ever thought of a real narrative. And then I just decided to do it, right then, fever brain and all. I thought about what I like, and I like demons. I thought about what you do with demons: you summon them. And I just kept like that, and by the end of the night, I had all of the story beats figured out. Then I held onto the idea super tight for 2 years, until 3rd year came around, when I pitched it to my class. And it was one of the ones we decided to make!

How did you decide you wanted to be a board artist?

I knew I wanted to board really early on. I mean, comics and films are my two favorite things! So I focused on it as much as I could in school, and there was some compromise involved. At one point, I just straight up didn’t do my assignment for board class, and brought my professor the boards that I was doing for an internship application. I was like “Well, I have this!” and he was just like, “Ah! This is great”. I got lucky.

That’s badass! Sounds like you had cool teachers?

Oh yeah - my boarding professors played a really important role. One of my most memorable moments was at the end of 1st year, actually. I had the BEST storyboard professor - super passionate about boarding, really cool, and loves teaching. I brought some stuff to him that I was working on, and was talking about how I knew that I wasn’t ready to apply to some position yet - and he just goes, “Oh I don’t think that’s true”. I was just like, “Whhaaa?”. He said that in a couple years, he thought I could be boarding professionally. It was the first time that anyone had said, “You can do this” to me - it was a moment that kept me going through school, and that I still carry with me. Oddly, it was my boarding professors who encouraged me to go for it - my teachers in other subjects said it was too hard.

Oof! Speaks to the power of discouragement… what else can you recommend to budding boarders?

Definitely keeping up with the best people who are working professionally, because it gives you a sense of the caliber of work that’s required.. Know what a professional board looks like (and they can look really diverse!) and research how board artists got where they are. Also, asking a lot of questions - your professors want to help you, and mentors are really important! And lastly: don’t give up! It is really hard, really time consuming, and really competitive - but you know that going in. The fact is, it’ll never happen for you if you quit - and if you don’t quit, others will, while you keep improving - and then there will be better odds that it does happen for you then that it doesn’t!

Tactical! Enough work stuff, let’s talk parties. Does the short accurately depict Seneca’s scene?

Ha, I wouldn’t really know! I didn’t go to a single party the entire time we were working on “One Hell of a Party”! Sweet irony. The film definitely represents parties I’ve gone to - when I’ve done that sorta thing. Drinking just kinda makes me sleepy.

Saw you’re a D&D fan though! Any go-to character you play?

I’m usually a ranger, but lately I’ve been a DM, so I’m making up characters! I just created this awakened undead skeleton named Rook, who’s a very cheerful, pretty innocent sweetheart, for a skeleton. He gained sentience and came to hate the necromancer who brought him back to life to be a slave, so he ran away, learned magic, and then got revenge on his old master. Now he’s joining the story - my players just met him - but I can’t wait to play as him in another game!

Has DMing helped you with your storytelling skills?

Oh yeah - it’s helped me take a step back and approach humor in a new way, too! Like I listen to Critical Role and Adventure Zone, these D&D podcasts, and they’ve really influenced my comedy sense. Like laughing along with these guys, I wound up asking myself ‘Why do I find this stuff funny, and other stuff not?’. I’d never thought of comedy as something that you learn, but it really is! I’m honing my own sense of humor, getting a handle on it.

What are some elements, comedic or other, that you would bring to your own cartoon series?

I’m really interested in character acting - I love when characters have distinct ways of moving. I think there’s so much you can tell about a character through how they move. One of my favorite shows that does it so well is actually “Baman Piderman” - their characters feel more alive because of the attention put into their mannerisms.

“Baman Piderman” is a modern masterpiece. Any other favorite shows?

Oh geez, that’s a tough one. There are a lot. “Gravity Falls” - Alex Hirsch is a huge inspiration for me. “Fullmetal Alchemist” - both, though I like “Brotherhood” just a bit more. “The Misadventures of Flapjack”, “Rick and Morty”, “Steven Universe”, “Mob Psycho 100”, “Transformers Prime” - the 3d TV series - I like the “Transformers” franchise except for the movies.

What about favorite artists or writers or sundry creative humans?

Ahh! Okay, there’s so many. Ok: so Alex Hirsch for sure. James Roberts, a writer for IDW Transformers comics. Matthew Mercer inspired me to start DMing, and I’ve learned a ton about story from him. Dana Terrace, an incredible board artist / is amazing at everything. And Jenn Strickland, another awesome board artist and animator! Christine Liu and Lauren Sassen are two more amazing board artists. There’s Alan Ituriel (created “Villainous”) and Jhonen Vasquez who created “Invader Zim,” the first cartoon I was ever obsessed with. JN Wiedle is an awesome cartoonist and comics artist, and Bahi JD and Yutaka Nakamura are some of my favorite animators. I’m also super influenced by “Akira” and Studio Ghibli’s films!

Last query! Whatcha workin’ on?

Well aside from my work-work, I’ve got quite a bit going on! I’m developing two web comic ideas, and I’m doing the art for a comic called “The Goosefighter,” written by Marilyn-Ann Campbell, for Toronto Comics Anthology Vol. 5. It’s about a student who has a stand-off with a goose - so it’s about looking evil right in the face. Up my alley!

Thanks for chatting with us Austen, you rock! Looking forward to all of your upcoming projects!

- Cooper

87 notes · View notes

aion-rsa · 4 years

Text

Upcoming Must-See Movies in 2021

https://ift.tt/2XPPY8Z

It’s 2021. Finally. If you’re reading this, it means you’ve hopefully gotten through the wreckage of last year unscathed and are ready for a brighter future. And if you’re also a movie lover, this certainly includes a trip (or 20) back to the cinemas.

Sure, theaters were technically open in some places last fall, but the moviegoing season has largely remained dormant since March 2020. Yet given good news about vaccines starting to become available, and an absolutely stacked 2021 movie release calendar, we have reasons to be cautiously optimistic.

Indeed, 2021 promises many of the most anticipated films from last year, plus new surprises. From the superhero variety like Black Widow to the art house with Wes Anderson’s The French Dispatch, 2021 could be a much needed respite. So below is just a sampling of what to expect from the year to come…

The Little Things

January 29

One of the year’s earliest high profile releases is also the first of WB’s film slate on HBO Max. The Little Things is a serial killer thriller in the old school mold. It also boasts a brutally talented cast that includes Denzel Washington and Rami Malek as the detectives, and Jared Leto as the killer. As the latest movie from John Lee Hancock (The Founder, The Alamo), this looks like the type of star-led seediness that used to dominate the multiplex.

Maclolm and Marie

February 5

Assassination Nation writer-director Sam Levinson returns for a decidedly stripped down and intimate character study about two people on the threshold of their lives changing–and perhaps splitting apart. With Zendaya and John David Washington in roles unlike anything we’ve seen the pair in before, they play a couple returning home after the premiere of Malcolm’s (Washington) first movie. He’s on the cusp of life-changing success as a director, but when confronted by Marie about past secrets and hard truths… the night takes a turn.

Judas and the Black Messiah

February 12

It’s kind of hard to wrap one’s head around the annual “Oscar race” in a year when little trophies don’t seem so damn important, but Warner Bros. feels strongly enough about this movie that it’s getting it into theaters and on HBO Max right in the thick of the pandemic-delayed awards season. And judging by the marketing, it’s bringing heat with it.

Shaka King directs and co-writes the story of Fred Hampton (Daniel Kaluuya), who became the chairman of the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party in the late 1960s and was murdered in cold blood by police in 1969. LaKeith Stanfield plays William O’Neal, a petty criminal who agreed to help the FBI take Hampton down. This promises to be incendiary, relevant material — and it’s almost here.

Minari

February 12

Lee Isaac Chung directs Steven Yeun–now fully shaking off his years as Glenn on The Walking Dead–in this semi-autobiographical film about a South Korean family struggling to settle down in rural America in the 1980s. Premiering nearly a year ago at the Sundance Film Festival, where it won both the U.S. Dramatic Grand Jury Prize and the U.S. Dramatic Audience Award, Minari had a quick one-week virtual release in December, with a number of critics placing it on their Top 10 lists for 2020.

Its story of immigration and assimilation currently has a perfect 100 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics lauding its heart, grace, and sensitivity. A few of ours also considered it among 2020’s best.

Nomadland

February 19

Utilizing both actors and real people, director Chloé Zhao (The Rider, Marvel’s upcoming Eternals) chronicles the lives of America’s “forgotten people” as they travel the West searching for work, companionship and community. A brilliant Frances McDormand stars as Fern, a woman in her mid-60s who lost her husband, her house, and her entire previous existence when her town literally vanished following the closure of its sole factory.

Zhao’s film quietly flows from despair to optimism and back to despair again, the hardscrabble lives of its itinerant cast (many of them actual nomads) foregrounded against often stunning–if lonely–vistas of the vast, empty American countryside.

I Care a Lot

February 19

A solid cast, led by Rosamund Pike, Peter Dinklage, Chris Messina, and Dianne Wiest, star in this satirical crime drama from director J. Blakeson (The Disappearance of Alice Creed). Pike plays Marla, a con artist whose scam is getting herself named legal guardian of her elderly marks and then draining their assets while sticking them in nursing homes. She’s ruthless and efficient at it, until she meets a woman (Wiest) whose ties to a crime boss (Dinklage) may prove too much of a challenge for the wily Marla. It was one of our favorites out of Toronto last year.

The Father

February 26

Anthony Hopkins gives a mesmerizing, and deeply tragic, performance as Anthony, an elderly British man whose descent into dementia is reflected by the film itself, which plays with time, setting, and continuity until both Anthony and the viewer can no longer tell what is real and what is not. Olivia Colman is equally moving as his daughter, who wants to get on with her own life even as she watches her father’s disintegrate in front of her.

We saw The Father last year at the AFI Fest and it ended up being a favorite of 2020; Hopkins is unforgettable in this bracing, heartbreaking work, which is stunningly adapted by first-time director Florian Zeller from his own award-winning play.

Chaos Walking

March 5

This constantly postponed sci-fi project has become one of those “we’ll believe it when we see it” films until it actually comes out. Shot nearly three and a half years ago by director Doug Liman, Chaos Walking has undergone extensive reshoots and was at one point reportedly deemed unreleasable.

Based on the book The Knife of Letting Go, it places Tom Holland (Spider-Man: Far From Home) and Daisy Ridley (The Rise of Skywalker) on a distant planet where Ridley, the only woman, can hear the thoughts of all the men due to a mysterious force called the Noise.

Raya and the Last Dragon

March 5

Longtime Walt Disney Animation Studios head of story, Paul Briggs (Frozen), will make his directorial debut on this original Disney animated fantasy, which draws upon Eastern traditions to tell the tale of a young warrior who goes searching for the world’s last dragon in the mysterious land of Kumandra. Cassie Steele will voice Raya while Awkwafina (The Farewell) will portray Sisu the dragon.

Disney Animation has been nearly invincible in recent years with other hits like Moana and Zootopia, so watch for this one to be another major hit for the Mouse.

Coming 2 America

March 5

The notion of whether nostalgia-based properties are still viable has cropped up repeatedly in the last few years. However, streaming, which is where Coming 2 America finds itself headed post-COVID, makes golden oldies much safer. This sequel—based on a 32-year-old comedy that was one of Eddie Murphy’s most financially successful hits—sees Murphy back as Prince Akeem, of course, along with Arsenio Hall returning as his loyal friend Semmi.

The plot revolves around Akeem’s discovery, just as he is about to be crowned king, that he has a long-lost son living in the States (we’re not sure how that happened, but let’s just go with it). That, of course, necessitates another visit to our shores—that is, if Akeem and Semmi presumably don’t get stopped at the border. The film reunites Murphy with Dolemite is My Name director Craig Brewer, so perhaps they can make some cutting-edge social comedy out of this?

The King’s Man

March 12

This might be a weird thing to say: but has World War I ever seemed so stylish? It is with Matthew Vaughn at the helm.

An origin story of sorts for the organization that gave us Colin Firth and the umbrella, The King’s Man is a father and son yarn where Ralph Fiennes’ Duke of Oxford is reluctant about his son Conrad (Harris Dickinson) joining the war effort. But they’ll both be up to it as the Duke launches an intelligence gathering agency independent from any government. It also includes Gemma Arterton, Matthew Goode, and Aaron Taylor-Johnson as charter members.

Oh, and did we mention they fight Rasputin?

Godzilla vs. Kong

March 26

Here we are, at last at the big punch up between Godzilla and King Kong. They both wear a crown, but in the film that Warner Bros. and Legendary Pictures have been building toward since 2014, only one can walk away with the title of the king of all the monsters.

Admittedly, not everyone loved the last American Godzilla movie, Godzilla: King of the Monsters, but we sure did. Still, Godzilla vs. Kong should be a different animal with Adam Wingard (You’re Next, The Guest) taking over directorial duties. It also has a stacked cast with some familiar faces (Kyle Chandler, Millie Bobby Brown, and Ziyi Zhang) and plenty of new ones (Alexander Skarsgård, Eiza González, Danai Gurira, Lance Reddick, and more).

It’ll probably be better than the original, right? And hey with its HBO Max rollout, questions of a poor box office run sure are conveniently mooted!

No Time to Die

April 2

Nothing lasts forever, and the Daniel Craig era of James Bond is coming to an end… hopefully in 2021. In fact, delays notwithstanding, it’s a bit of a surprise Craig is getting an official swan song with this movie after the star said he’d rather “slash his wrists” before doing another one. Well, we’re glad he didn’t, just as we’re hopeful for his final installment in the tuxedo.

Director Cary Joji Fukunaga is a newcomer to the franchise, but that might be a good thing after how tired Spectre felt, and Fukunaga has done sterling work in the past on True Detective and Maniac. He also looks to bring the curtain down on the whole Craig oeuvre by picking up on the last movie’s lingering threads, such as 007 driving off into the sunset with Léa Seydoux’s Madeleine Swann, while introducing new ones that include Rami Malek as Bond villain Safin and Ana de Armas as new Bond girl Paloma. Yay for the Knives Out reunion!

Mortal Kombat

April 16

Not to be deterred by the relative failure of Sony’s Monster Hunter in theaters at the tail end of 2020, Warner Bros. is giving this venerable video game franchise another shot at live-action cinematic glory after two previous tries in the 1990s. Director Simon McQuoid makes his feature debut while the script comes from Dave Callaham (Wonder Woman 1984, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings) and the cast includes a number of actors you’ve seen in other films but can’t quite place.

The plot? Who knows! But we’re guessing it will feature gods, demons, and warriors battling for control of the 18 realms in various fighting tournaments. What else do you want?

A Quiet Place Part II

April 23

The sequel to one of 2018’s biggest surprises, A Quiet Place Part II comes with major expectations. And few may hold it to a higher standard than writer-director John Krasinski. Despite (spoiler) the death of his character in the first film, Krasinski returns behind the camera for the sequel after saying he wouldn’t. The story he came up with apparently was too good to pass up.

The film again stars Emily Blunt as the often silenced mother of a vulnerable family, which includes son Marcus (Noah Jupe) and deaf daughter Regan (Millicent Simmonds). However, now that they know how to kill the eagle-eared alien monsters who’ve taken over their planet, the cast has grown to include Cillian Murphy and Djimon Hounsou. While the film has been delayed due to the coronavirus outbreak, trust us that it’ll be worth the wait. Is it finally time for… resistance?

Last Night in Soho

April 23

Fresh off the success of 2017’s Baby Driver (his biggest commercial hit to date), iconoclastic British director Edgar Wright returns with what is described as a psychological and possibly time-bending horror thriller set in London. Whether this features Wright’s trademark self-aware humor remains to be seen, but since the film is said to be inspired by dread-inducing genre classics like Repulsion and Don’t Look Now, he might be going for a different effect this time.

The cast, of course, is outstanding: upstarts Anya Taylor-Joy (Queen’s Gambit) and Thomasin McKenzie (Jojo Rabbit) will face off with Matt Smith (Doctor Who), and British legends Diana Rigg and Terence Stamp. And the truth is we’re never going to miss one of Wright’s movies. Taylor-Joy talked to us here about finding her 1960s lounge singer voice for the film.

Black Widow

May 7

Some would charitably say it arrives a decade late, but Black Widow is finally getting her own movie. This is fairly remarkable considering she became street pizza in Avengers: Endgame, but this movie fits snugly between the events of Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War. It also promises to be the most pared down Marvel Studios movie since 2014’s Captain America: The Winter Soldier, and that’s a good thing.

In the film, Scarlett Johansson’s Natasha Romanoff is on the run after burning her bridges with the U.S. government and UN. This brings her back to the spy games she thought she’d escaped from her youth, and back in the orbit of her “sister” Yelena (Florence Pugh). Old wounds are ripped open, old Soviet foes, including David Harbour as the Red Guardian and Rachel Weisz as Nat and Yelena’s girlhood instructor, are revealed, and many a fight sequence with minimal CGI will be executed.

How’s that for a real start to Phase 4? Of course that’s still assuming this comes out before The Eternals after it was delayed, again, due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Spiral

May 21

Chris Rock has co-written the story for a new take on the Saw franchise. Never thought we’d write those words! The fact that it also stars Rock, as well as Samuel L. Jackson, is likewise head-turning. It looks like they’re going for legitimate horror with Darren Lynn Bousman attached to direct after helming three of the Saw sequels, and its grisly pre-COVID trailer from last year.

Hopefully this will be better than most of the franchise that came before, and given the heavily David Fincher-influenced tone of the first trailer, we’re willing to cross our fingers and play this game.

Free Guy

May 21

What would you do if you discovered that you were just a background character in an open world video game—and that the game was soon about to go offline? That’s the premise of this existential sci-fi comedy from director Shawn Levy, best known for the Night at the Museum series and as an executive producer and director on Stranger Things. Ryan Reynolds stars as Guy, a bank teller who discovers that his life is not what he thought it was, and in fact isn’t even real—or is it? We’ve seen a preview of footage, so we’d suggest you think Truman Show, if Truman was trapped in Grand Theft Auto.

May 28

Just when you thought this never-say-die franchise had shown us everything it could possibly dream up, it ups the stakes one more time: the ninth entry in the Fast and Furious saga (excluding 2019’s Hobbs and Shaw) will reportedly take Dom Toretto (Vin Diesel) and his cohorts into space as they battle Dom’s long-lost brother Jakob (John Cena, making a long-overdue debut in this series). Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, Jordana Brewster, Helen Mirren, and Charlize Theron all also return, as does director Justin Lin, who took a two-film break from his signature series. Expect to see the required physics-defying stunts, logic-defying action and even more talk about “family” than usual.

Cruella

May 28

Since Disney has already made an animated 101 Dalmatians in 1961 and a live-action remake in 1996, it is apparently time to tell the story again Maleficent-style. Hence we now focus on the viewpoint of iconic villainess Cruella de Vil, played this time by Emma Stone. She’s joined in the movie by Emma Thompson, Paul Walter Hauser, and Mark Strong, with direction handled by Craig Gillespie (sort of a step down from 2017’s I, Tonya, if you ask us).

The story has been updated to the 1970s, but Cruella–now a fashion designer–still covets the fur of dogs for her creations. This is a Mouse House joint, so don’t expect it to get too dark, and don’t be completely surprised if it ends up as a premium on Disney+ in lieu of its already delayed theatrical release.

Infinite

May 28

This sci-fi yarn from director Antoine Fuqua (The Equalizer) stars Mark Wahlberg as a man experiencing what he thinks are hallucinations, but which turn out to be memories from past lives. He soon learns that there is a secret society of people just like him, except that they have total recall of their past identities and have acted to change the course of history throughout the centuries.

Based on the novel The Reincarnationist Papers by D. Eric Maikranz, this was originally a post-Marvel vehicle for Chris Evans. He dropped out, and the combination of Fuqua and Wahlberg hints at something more action-oriented than the rather cerebral premise suggests. The film also stars Sophie Cookson, Chiwetel Ejiofor, and Dylan O’Brien.

The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It

June 4

James Wan is already directing a new horror film this year so he’s stepping away from the directorial duties on the third film based on the paranormal investigations of Ed and Lorraine Warren (Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga). That task has fallen to Michael Chaves (The Curse of La Llorona), so expect plenty of the same Wan Universe touches: heavy atmosphere, superb use of sound, and shocking, eerie visuals.

Details are scarce, but the plot—like the other two Conjuring films—is taken from the true-life case of a man who went on trial for murder and said as his defense that he was possessed by a demon when he committed his crimes. That’s all we know for now, except that, intriguingly, Mitchell Hoog and Megan Ashley Brown have been cast as younger versions of the Warrens.

Ghostbusters: Afterlife

June 11

With the 2016 Ghostbusters reboot criticized (fairly) for its lack of imagination and castigated (unfairly as hell) for its all-female ghost-hunting crew, director Jason Reitman–finally cashing in on the family name by returning to the brand his dad Ivan directed to glory in 1984–has crafted a direct sequel to the original films.

Books

Ghostbusters: Afterlife – Who is Ivo Shandor?

By Gavin Jasper

Movies

The Greatest Movie Sequels Never Made

By Jack Beresford

Set 30 years later, Afterlife follows a family who move to a small town only to discover that they have a long-secret connection to the OG Ghostbusters. Carrie Coon (The Leftovers), Finn Wolfhard (Stranger Things) and Paul Rudd (Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania) star alongside charter cast members Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, Sigourney Weaver, Annie Potts, and, yes, Bill Murray.

In the Heights

June 18

Lin-Manuel Miranda’s first Broadway hit musical gets the big screen treatment (by way of HBO Max) from director Jon M. Chu (Crazy Rich Asians). Set in Washington Heights over the course of a three-day heat wave, the plot and ensemble cast carry echoes of both Rent and Do the Right Thing. While a success on the stage—if not quite the cultural phenomenon that Miranda’s next show, Hamilton—it remains to be seen whether In the Heights can strike a chord with streaming audiences.

Luca

June 18

Continuing its current run of all-new, non-sequel original films started in 2020 with Onward and Soul, Pixar will unveil Luca this summer. Directed by Enrico Casarosa–making his feature debut after 18 years with the animation powerhouse–the film tells the story of a friendship between a human being and a sea monster (disguised as another human child) on the Italian Riviera. That’s about all we have on it for now, except that the cast includes Drake Bell and John Ratzenberger.

Pixar’s recent track record has included masterpieces like Inside Out, solid sequels like Toy Story 4, and shakier propositions like The Incredibles 2, but we don’t have any indication yet of what to expect from Luca.

Venom: Let There Be Carnage

June 25

Can anyone honestly say that 2018’s Venom was a “good” movie? A batshit insane movie, yes, and perhaps even an entertaining one in its own nutty way, but good or not, it made nearly a billion bucks at the box office so here we are.

Tom Hardy will return to peel more scenery down with his teeth as both Eddie Brock and his fanged, towering alien symbiote while Woody Harrelson will fulfill his destiny and play Cletus Kasady, aka Carnage, the perfected hybrid of psychopathic serial killer and red pile of vicious alien goo. Let the carnage begin!

Top Gun: Maverick

July 2

It’s been 34 years since Tom Cruise first soared through the skies as hotshot pilot Pete “Maverick” Mitchell, and he’ll take to the air once more in a sequel that also features Val Kilmer, Jennifer Connelly, Miles Teller, Jon Hamm, and more. The flying and action sequences from director Joseph Kosinski (who worked with Cruise on Oblivion) will undoubtedly be first-rate, but the studio (Paramount) has to be nervous after seeing one nostalgia-based franchise after another (Blade Runner, Charlie’s Angels, Terminator, The Shining) crash and burn recently.

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

July 10

With Shang-Chi, Marvel Studios hopes to do for Asian culture what the company did with the groundbreaking Black Panther nearly three years ago: create another superhero epic with a non-white lead and a mythology steeped in a non-Western culture. Simu Liu stars in the title role as the “master of kung fu,” who must do battle with the nefarious Ten Rings organization and its leader, the Mandarin (the “real” one, not the imposter from Iron Man 3, played here by the legendary Tony Leung). Director Destin Daniel Cretton (Just Mercy) will open up a whole new corner of the Marvel Cinematic Universe with this story and character, whose origins stretch back to 1973.

The Forever Purge

July 9

One day nearly eight years ago, you went to see a low-budget dystopian sci-fi/horror flick called The Purge, and the next thing you know, it’s 2021 and you’re getting ready to see the fifth and allegedly final entry in the series (which has also spawned a TV show). Written by creator James DeMonaco and directed by Everardo Gout, the film will once again focus on the title event, an annual 12-hour national bacchanal in which all crime, even murder, is legal. How this ends the story, and where and when it falls into the context of the rest of the films, remains a secret for now. Filming was completed back in February 2020, with the film’s release delayed from last summer by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Space Jam: A New Legacy

July 16

There are two types of folks when it comes to the original Space Jam of 1996: those who were between the ages of three and 11 when it came out, and everyone else. In one camp it is an unsightly relic of ‘90s cross-promotional cheese; in the other, it’s a sports movie classic. Luckily for kids today, NBA star LeBron James was 11 for most of ’96, and he’s bringing back the hoops and the Looney Tunes in Space Jam: A New Legacy.

The film will be among the many Warner Bros. pics premieres on HBO Max and in theaters this year, and it will see King James share above-the-title credits with Bugs Bunny. All is as it should be.

Uncharted

July 16

An Uncharted movie has been a long time coming. How long you might ask? Well, when the idea of an Uncharted movie first started getting bandied around Hollywood, the earliest game in the series just launched to rave reviews in the PlayStation 3’s first year. We’re now on PlayStation 5(!), and Mark Wahlberg has gone from angling to play young hero Nathan Drake to starring his wisecracking sidekick, Victor “Sully” Sullivan.

Still, we’re here with an Uncharted movie finally in the can. Directed by Ruben Fleischer (Zombieland, Venom), the video game movie stars everyone’s favorite web-head, Tom Holland, as Drake, a pseudo-modern day Indiana Jones. Whether it lives up to that older franchise’s storied legacy remains to be seen (especially given its gaming roots), but one thing’s for sure, Holland will get to show off more gymnast skill thanks to Uncharted’s famous parkour iconography.

The Tomorrow War

July 23

An original IP attempting to be a summer blockbuster? As we live and breathe. The Tomorrow War marks director Chris McKay’s first foray into live-action after helming The Lego Batman Movie. The film stars Chris Pratt as a soldier from the past who’s been “drafted by scientists” to the present in order to fight off an alien invasion overwhelming our future’s military. One might ask why said scientists didn’t use their fancy-schmancy time traveling shenanigans to warn about the impending aliens, but here we are.

Jungle Cruise

July 30

Disney dips into its theme park rides again as a source for a movie, hoping that the Pirates of the Caribbean lightning will strike once more. This time it’s the famous Adventureland riverboat ride, which is free enough of a real narrative that one has to wonder why some five screenwriters (at least) worked on the movie’s script.

Jaume Collet-Serra (The Shallows) directs stars Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt down this particular river, as they battle wild animals and a competing expedition in their search for a tree with miraculous healing powers. The comic chemistry between Johnson and Blunt is key here, especially if they really can mimic Bogie and Hepburn in the similarly plotted The African Queen. If they can sell that, Disney might just have a new water-based franchise to replace their sinking Pirates ship.

The Green Knight

July 30

David Lowery, the singular director behind A Ghost Story and The Old Man & the Gun, helmed a fantasy adaptation of the Arthurian legend of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. And his take on the material was apparently strong enough to entice A24 to produce it. Not much else is yet known about the film other than its cast, which includes Dev Patel, Alicia Vikander, Ralph Ineson, and Kate Dickie–and that it’s another casualty of COVID, with its 2020 release date being delayed last year. So this is one we’re definitely going to keep an eye on.

The Suicide Squad

August 6

Arguably the most high-profile of the WB films being transitioned to HBO Max, The Suicide Squad is James Gunn’s soft-reboot of the previous one-film franchise. It’s kind of funny WB went in that direction when the first movie generated more than $740 million, but when the reviews and word of mouth were that toxic… well, you get the guy who did Guardians of the Galaxy to fix things.

Peacemaker: Suicide Squad Spinoff With John Cena Coming to HBO Max

By Mike Cecchini

Movies

The Suicide Squad Trailer Promises James Gunn’s “1970s War Movie”

By David Crow

Elements from the original movie are still here, most notably Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn and Viola Davis’ Amanda Waller, but the film promises to be weirder, meaner, and also sillier. The first points are proven by its expected R-rating, and the latter is underscored by its giant talking Great White Shark. Okay, we’ll bite.

Deep Water

August 13

Seedy erotic thrillers and neo noirs bathed in shadows and sex are largely considered a thing of the past—specifically 1980s and ‘90s Hollywood cinema. Maybe that’s why Deep Water hooked Adrian Lyne (Fatal Attraction, Indecent Proposal) to direct. The throwback is based on a 1957 novel by the legendary Patricia Highsmith (The Talented Mr. Ripley), and it pits a disenchanted married couple against each other, with the bored pair playing mind games that leave friends and acquaintances dead. That the couple in question is played by Ben Affleck and Ana de Armas, who’ve since become a real life item, will probably get plenty of attention close to release.

Respect

August 13

Respect is the long-awaited biopic of the legendary Aretha Franklin, with the Queen of Soul herself involved in its development for years until her death in August 2018. Authorized biopics always make one wonder how accurate the film will be, but then again, Aretha had nothing to be ashamed of. Hers was a life well-lived, her voice almost beyond human comprehension, and the only thing now is to see whether star Jennifer Hudson (Franklin’s personal choice) and director Liesl Tommy (making her feature debut) can do the Queen justice.

Candyman

August 27

In some ways it’s surprising that it’s taken this long—28 years, notwithstanding a couple of sequels—to seriously revisit the original Candyman. Director Bernard Rose’s original adaptation of the Clive Baker story, “The Forbidden,” is still relevant and effective today. Back then, the film touched on urban legends, poverty, and segregation: themes that are still ripe for exploration through a genre touchstone today.

After her breathtaking feature directorial debut, Little Woods, Nia DaCosta helmed this bloody reboot while working from a screenplay co-written by Jordan Peele (Get Out). That’s a powerful combination, even before news came down DaCosta was helming Captain Marvel 2. And with an actor on-the-cusp of mega-stardom, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, picking up Tony Todd’s gnarly hook, this is one to watch out for.

The Beatles: Get Back

August 27

Peter Jackson seems to enjoy making films about what inspired him in his youth: The Lord of the Rings, King Kong, his grandfather’s World War I service informing They Shall Not Grow Old. So perhaps it was inevitable he’d make a film about the greatest youth icon of his generation, the Beatles. In truth, The Beatles: Get Back is a challenge to a previous documentary named Let It Be, and the general pop culture image it painted.

That 1970 doc by Michael Lindsay-Hogg zeroed in on the band’s final released album, Let It Be (although it was recorded before Abbey Road). Now, using previously unseen footage, Jackson seeks to challenge the narrative that the album was created entirely from a place of animosity among the bandmates, or that the Beatles had long lost their camaraderie by the end of road. Embracing the original title of the album, “Get Back,” Jackson wants to get back to where he thinks the band’s image once belonged.

Death on the Nile

September 17

Murder on the Orient Express (2017) became a surprise hit for director and star Kenneth Branagh. Who knew that audiences would still be interested in an 83-year-old mystery novel about an eccentric Belgian detective with one hell of a mustache? Luckily, Agatha Christie featured Poirot in some 32 other novels, of which Death on the Nile is one of the most famous, so here we are.

Branagh once again directs and stars as Poirot, this time investigating a murder aboard a steamer sailing down Egypt’s famous river. The cast includes Gal Gadot, Armie Hammer, Letitia Wright, Tom Bateman, Ali Fazal, Annette Bening, Rose Leslie, and Russell Brand. Expect more lavish locales, scandalous revelations, the firing of a pistol or two, and, yes, more shots of that stunning Poirot facial hair.

The Many Saints of Newark

September 24

The idea of a prequel to anything always fills us with trepidation, and re-opening a nearly perfect property like The Sopranos makes the prospect even less appetizing. But Sopranos creator David Chase has apparently wanted to explore the back history of his iconic crime family for some time, and there certainly seems to be a rich tapestry of characters and events that have only been hinted at in the series.

Directed by series veteran Alan Taylor (Thor: The Dark World), The Many Saints of Newark stars Alessandro Nivola as Dickie Moltisanti (Christopher’s father), along with Jon Bernthal, Vera Farmiga, Corey Stoll, Ray Liotta, and others. But the most fascinating casting is that of Michael Gandolfini—James’ son—as the younger version of the character with which his late dad made pop culture history. For that alone, we’ll be there on opening night… even if that just means HBO Max!

Dune

October 1

Could third time be the charm for Frank Herbert’s complex novel of the far future, long acknowledged as one of the greatest—if most difficult to read—milestones in all of science fiction? David Lynch’s 1984 version was, to be charitable, an honorable mess, while the 2000 Sci-Fi Channel miniseries was decent and faithful, but limited in scope. Now director Denis Villeneuve (Blade Runner 2049, Arrival) is pulling out all the stops—even breaking the story into two movies to give the proper space.

Movies

Dune Trailer Breakdown and Analysis

By Mike Cecchini

Movies

What Alejandro Jodorowsky Thinks of the New Dune Trailer

By Mike Cecchini and 1 other

On the surface, the plot is simple: as galactic powers vie for control of the only planet that produces a substance capable of allowing interstellar flight, a young messiah emerges to lead that planet’s people to freedom. But this tale is dense with multiple layers of politics, metaphysics, mysticism, and hard science.

Villeneuve has assembled a jaw-dropping cast, including Timothée Chalamet, Rebecca Ferguson, Oscar Isaac, Josh Brolin, Stellan Skarsgård, Dave Bautista, Zendaya, Charlotte Rampling, Jason Momoa, and Javier Bardem, and if he pulls this off, just hand him every sci-fi novel ever written. Particularly, if relations between the director and WB remain strained…

Morbius

October 8

Following the monstrous (pun intended) success of Venom, Sony Pictures is making its second attempt to mine Spider-Man’s universe of villains with the dark tale of Dr. Michael Morbius (Jared Leto), whose efforts to cure himself of a fatal blood disease turn him instead into a blood-drinking anti-hero. Morbius has been lurking around the Marvel Comics canon since 1971, often either sparring or teaming with Spidey, and it remains uncertain whether he’s got the cache to carry a movie on his own. In addition, can Leto wash away the bad taste left behind by his tattooed and grilled Joker in Suicide Squad?

Halloween Kills

October 15

2018’s outstanding reboot of the long-running horror franchise—which saw David Gordon Green (Stronger) direct Jamie Lee Curtis in a reprise of her most famous role—was a tremendous hit. So in classic Halloween fashion, two more sequels were put into production (the second, Halloween Ends, will be out in 2022… hopefully).

Movies

Halloween: A Legacy Unmasked

By David Crow

Movies

How Jason Blum Changed Horror Movies

By Rosie Fletcher

Curtis is back as Laurie Strode, along with Judy Greer as her daughter, Andi Matichak as her granddaughter, and Nick Castle sharing Michael Myers duties with James Jude Courtney. Kyle Richards and Charles Cyphers, meanwhile, will reprise their roles as Lindsey Wallace and former sheriff Leigh Brackett from the original 1978 Halloween (Anthony Michael Hall will play the adult version of Tommy Doyle). The plot remains a mystery, but we’re pretty sure it will involve yet another confrontation between Laurie and a rampaging Myers.

The Last Duel

October 15

What was once among the most anticipated films of 2020, The Last Duel is the historical epic prestige project marked by reunions: Ridley Scott returns to his passion for period drama and violence; Matt Damon and Ben Affleck work together for the first time in ages as both actors and writers; and the film also unites each with themes that were just as potent in the medieval world as today: One knight (Damon) in King Charles VI’s court accuses another who’s his best friend (Adam Driver) of raping his wife (Jodie Comer). Oh, and Affleck plays the King of France.

With obviously harrowing—and uncomfortable—themes that resonate today, The Last Duel is based on an actual trial by combat from the 14th century, and is a film Affleck and Damon co-wrote with Nicole Holofcener (Can You Ever Forgive Me?). It’s strong material, and could prove to be one of the year’s most riveting or misjudged films. Until then, it has our full attention.

Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins

October 22

While the idea of a Hasbro Movie Universe seems to be kind of idling at the moment, corners of that hypothetical cinematic empire remain active. One such brand is G.I. Joe, which will launch its first spin-off in this origin story of one of the team’s most popular characters. Much of his early background remains mysterious, so there’s room to create a fairly original story while incorporating lore and characters already established in the G.I. Joe mythos.

Neither of the previous G.I. Joe features (The Rise of Cobra and Retaliation) have been much good, so we can probably expect the same level of quality from this one. Director Robert Schwentke (the last two Divergent movies) doesn’t inspire much excitement either. On the other hand, Henry Golding (Crazy Rich Asians) will star in the title role, and having Iko Uwais (The Raid) and Samara Weaving (Ready or Not) on board isn’t too bad either.

Eternals

November 5

Based on a Marvel Comics series by the legendary Jack Kirby, the now long-forthcoming Eternals centers around an ancient race of powerful beings who must protect the Earth against their destructive counterparts (and genetic cousins), the Deviants. Director Chloe Zhao (fresh off the awards season buzzy Nomadland) takes her first swing at epic studio filmmaking, working with a cast that includes Angelina Jolie, Gemma Chan, Kit Harington, Salma Hayek, Richard Madden, Brian Tyree Henry, and more.

Movies

Upcoming Marvel Movies Release Dates: MCU Phase 4 Schedule, Cast, and Story Details

By Mike Cecchini and 1 other

Movies

The Incredible Hulk’s Diminished Legacy in the Marvel Cinematic Universe

By Gavin Jasper

In many ways, Eternals represents another huge creative risk for Marvel Studios: It’s a big, cosmic ensemble film introducing an ensemble that the vast majority of the public has never heard of. But then, it’s sort of in the same position as Guardians of the Galaxy from way back in 2014, and we all know what happened there.

Elvis

November 5

Obviously we’ve all seen musical biopics before—too many after Walk Hard broke the formula down—but Elvis promises to be something different. A new passion project from Baz Luhrmann, the filmmaker behind Moulin Rouge!, Romeo + Juliet, and The Great Gatsby, Elvis is expected to be a radically stylized account of Elvis Presley’s rise to all shook up fame. With an impressive cast that includes Tom Hanks as manager “Colonel” Tom Parker and Kelvin Harrison Jr. as B.B. King, and with up-and-comer Austin Butler as the King of Rock and Roll himself, it should be a hell of a show.

King Richard

November 19

Will Smith’s King Richard promises to be a different kind of biographical film coming down the pipe. Rather than being told from the vantage of professional tennis playing stars Venus and Serena Williams, King Richard centers on their father and coach, Richard Williams. It’s an interesting choice to focus on the male father instead of the game-changing Black daughters, but we’ll see if there’s a strong creative reason for the approach soon enough. The film is directed by Reinaldo Marcus Green (Monsters and Men, Joe Bell).

Mission: Impossible 7

November 19

Once upon a time, the appeal of the Mission: Impossible movies was to see different directors offer their own take on Tom Cruise running through death-defying stunts. But then Christopher McQuarrie had to come along and make the best one in franchise history (twice). First there was Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation and then Mission: Impossible – Fallout. Now McQuarrie and company have set up their own separate quartet of films with recurring original characters like new franchise MVP Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson) across four films.

Movies

Audio Surfaces of Tom Cruise Raging on the Set of Mission: Impossible 7

By Kirsten Howard

Movies

Mission: Impossible 7 – What’s Next for the Franchise?

By David Crow

Thus enters M:I7, the third McQuarrie joint in the series and first half of a pair of incoming sequels filmed together. The first-half of this two-parter sees the whole crew back together, including Cruise’s Ethan Hunt, Ilsa, Benji (Simon Pegg), Luther (Ving Rhames), and CIA Director Erika Sloane (Angela Bassett). They’re also being joined by Hayley Atwell and Pom Klementieff, but really we’re all just eager to see what kind of insane stunts they can do to top the HALO jump in the last one.

West Side Story

December 10

Steven Spielberg has just two remakes on his directorial resume: Always (1989) and War of the Worlds (2005). While the former is mostly forgotten and the latter was an adaptation of a story that has been filmed many times, his upcoming reimagining of West Side Story will undoubtedly be directly compared to Robert Wise’s iconic 1961 screen version of this classic musical.

A few numbers in previous films aside, Spielberg has never directed a full-blown musical before, let alone one associated with such powerhouse songs and dance numbers. His version, with a script by Tony Kushner, is said to stay closer to the original Broadway show than the 1961 film—but with its themes of love struggling to cross divides created by hate and bigotry, don’t be surprised if it’s just as hard-hitting in 2021. Certainly would’ve devastated last year….

Spider-Man 3

December 17

Sony has finally gotten to a “Spider-Man 3” again in their oft-rebooted franchise crown jewel (technically though this film is still untitled). That proved to be a stumbling block the first time it occurred with Tobey Maguire in the red and blues, but the company seems undaunted since Tom Holland’s third outing is expected to bring Maguire back—him and just about everyone else too.

Movies

Spider-Man 3: Charlie Cox Daredevil Return Would Redeem the Marvel Netflix Universe

By Joseph Baxter

Movies

Spider-Man 3 Adds Benedict Cumberbatch’s Doctor Strange

By Joseph Baxter

With a multiverse plot ripped straight from the arguably best Spidey movie ever, 2018’s Into the Spider-Verse, Holland’s third outing is bringing back Maguire, Andrew Garfield’s Spider-Man, Alfred Molina as Doc Ock, Jamie Foxx as Electro (eh), and probably more. It’s a Spidey crossover extravaganza that’s only missing a Spider-Ham. But just you wait…

The Matrix 4

December 22

Rebooting or continuing The Matrix series has always been a tough proposition. While the original Matrix film is one of the landmark achievements in science fiction and early digital effects filmmaking in the 1990s, its sequels were… less celebrated. In fact, directors Lily and Lana Wachowski were publicly wary about the idea of ever going back to the series. And yet, here we are with Lana (alone) helming a project that’s been a longtime priority for Warner Bros.

Movies

The Matrix 4: Laurence Fishburne “Wasn’t Invited” to Reprise Morpheus Role

By John Saavedra

Movies

The Matrix 4 Already Happened: Revisiting The Matrix Online

By John Saavedra

The Matrix 4 also brings back Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss, and Jada Pinkett Smith. This is curious since Reeves and Moss’ characters died at the end of the Matrix trilogy—and also because Laurence Fishburne’s Morpheus did not, yet he wasn’t asked back. We cannot say we’re thrilled about the prospect of more adventures in Zion after the disappointment of the first two sequels, but we’d be lying if we didn’t admit we’re still curious to see the story that brought Lana back to this future.

The French Dispatch

TBA

Wes Anderson has a new film coming out. Better still, it is another live-action film. While Anderson’s use of animation is singular, it’s been seven years since The Grand Budapest Hotel, which we maintain is one of the best movies of the last decade. Anderson is working with Timothée Chalamet and Cristoph Waltz for the first time with this film, as well as several familiar faces including Saoirse Ronan, Willem Dafoe, Tilda Swinton, Léa Seydoux, Adrien Brody, Owen Wilson, Jason Schwartzman, and, of course, Bill Murray.

The French Dispatch is set deep in the 20th century during the peak of modern journalism, it brings to life a series of fictional stories in a fictional magazine, published in a fictional French city. We suspect though, if Anderson’s last two live-action movies are any indication, it’ll have more than fiction on its mind–especially since it’s inspired by actual New Yorker stories, and the journalists who wrote them! We missed it in 2020, so here’s hoping it really does go to print in 2021!

Other interesting movies that may come out in 2021 but do not yet have release dates: Next Goal Wins, Don’t Worry Darling, Nightmare Alley, Antlers, Blonde, The Northman, Resident Evil, Red Notice, Those Who Wish Me Dead, Army of the Dead.

cnx.cmd.push(function() { cnx({ playerId: "106e33c0-3911-473c-b599-b1426db57530", }).render("0270c398a82f44f49c23c16122516796"); });

The post Upcoming Must-See Movies in 2021 appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/2NfKJ0o

#aion-rsa #Den of Geek

0 notes