#rashomon effect definition

[iamadarshbadri]

What can IR students learn from the Movie "Rashomon"?

Let me tell you a story of Rashomon! Say a man – specifically a samurai – is killed in the woods in a seemingly remote village forest in Japan. One by one, each witness is brought before the court and told to narrate the story. First comes the woodcutter, who claims to have witnessed the horror of seeing the samurai’s dead body. Then comes a priest, who testifies against the likely attacker, a…

[sskk-manifesto]

Bungou Stray Dogs: Dead Apple and how “ability users” (opposite to “normal people”) learning to accept themselves through the acceptance of their own abilities is a queer metaphor of acceptance of own's sexual orientation and gender: an essay by me

[starlightshadowsworld]

The Wary Weretiger

"You know, I think therapy might be more effective than this." Said Atsushi. He didn't need to turn around to know Akutugawa was rolling his eyes.

"Shut up."

Atsushi raised his hand, catching the orange. "Huh, you even peeled it this time. Must be serious."

He wasn't exactly sure how they got here. Akutagawa had been hunting him down for his bounty.... And than one day just stopped. Somewhere along the lines this had become their routine.

Akutugawa ranted at him, Atsushi sat and ate whatever fruit he'd pick up on the way. Sometimes he'd voice his own opinion and Akutugawa would begrudgingly listen.

It was werid.

But not unwelcome.

It definitely beat having his leg cut off, that's for sure.

"Go on, out with it. I'm busy today." Akutugawa scoffed "and what could you be possibly busy with." Atsushi shrugged "well I still need to get a job."

It didn't matter how much he saved from what he stole from the Orphanage, it wouldn't last him much longer.

"I thought the Agency offered you a position." Said Akutugawa, carefully. As kind as Atsushi was he fought like a caged beast. He could and would ditch Akutugawa if the other offended him.

And Akutugawa didn't want to admit he liked his company.

Atsushi took a bite out of an orange slice "only because of my ability. They're nice people, but I'll find a job myself. Besides that would you my enemy and I am not dealing with that."

His leg would grow back but it was painful. And being on Akutugawa's not bad side was a nice place to be.

Not that Atsushi would admit it.

Akutagawa nodded, he could respect wanting to keep your pride even when you were at rock bottom. But even soo... "Is it so bad for them to want you for your ability?"

Atsushi paused.

"My whole life people have only wanted my ability. They've tried to rip it out of me because they felt entitled to it.... Do you really think I'd want to join an organisation that values it so highly?"

There was an edge to his tone, but also sadness. Akutugawa's eyes went wide in shock.

He unconsciously tugged his coat closer. He wouldn't know what to do if Rashomon was stolen from him.

Akutugawa felt vulnerable just taking a bath, he couldn't imagine how Atsushi felt feeling his ability get ripped out of his skin. It was fortunate that it clearly failed.

It certainly explained Atsushi's distrust of both light and dark.

"I suppose not." Said Akutugawa, going quiet in thought. He went back to his initial question.

"I was once in a situation like yours. I lived in the slums, it was there Dazai found me and I joined the Port Mafia. That became my purpose, and I'm lost without it. But you... You don't have that, and yet you seem satisfied."

Atsushi hummed, thoughtful. "I'm gonna say something, but right or wrong you're not allowed to stab me again."

Akutagawa scoffed.

"I stabbed you one time, stop acting like it was such a big deal.... But very well, I won't stab you."

Atsushi turned to face Akutugawa, putting his orange slices back into a tupperware box. "That isn't your purpose."

Akutagawa is taken aback. He wants to argue but something in him stops him. The way Atsushi spoke to him now was different to how he usually does.

He sounded like Dazai.

Dazai in the quiet moments, the rare moments when Akutugawa hadn't failed him. The all seeing look in his eye as he read Akutugawa like an open book.

"You had a purpose, one you cherished like a second soul. But you lost it. You tried to convince yourself whatever you consider your purpose now is it, but it isn't. And it never will be."

And yet when Atsushi spoke it was kind. It wasn't intended to tear Akutugawa down, quite the opposite. And Akutugawa found himself unable to look away.

"... How do you know this?"

Atsushi smiled, it was small and sad and it didn't fit him like his usual grin did. "You wouldn't be trying so hard to find your purpose if you truly believed you found it."

He looked away, giving Akutugawa some privacy in his own thoughts. "Ask yourself, who were you before the Port Mafia? Who were you back when you were like me? There's you're answer."

Akutagawa frowned, deep in thought. He'd been... He'd been weaker and pitiful. A small child who killed whoever went in his way, but killing hadn't changed in his life.

He was the Port Mafia's Rabid dog, he was still a killer so that wasn't it.

What had he been killing for? In the Port Mafia it was because those were his orders. Because the weak needed to be destroyed to make way for the strong.

Back in the slums it had been for survival. Akutugawa would've died many times over if he'd let those idiots survive. And Gin wouldn't have survived of he hadn't protected her from them.

Akutagawa froze.

... That's what it was. He had been a protector, his reason for killing down in the slums was to protect Gin and his friends.

His friends who were killed on the night Dazai found him... The night Akutugawa lost his purpose and tried to gain another.

But failed.

"I can't get it back." Whispered Akutugawa, suprised that he choked up at the thought. He hadn't thought of them in years.

"You can" Said Atsushi, looking at him again. "The circumstances may have changed, but the core premise is the same. You just have to open yourself up to that."

Open himself up? So Akutugawa had to find something else to protect? That... Didn't seem so hard, given the Port Mafia protected the city from the shadows. And Gin was still with him.

Had it really been infront of him, all this time?

"That's the difference between us" said Atsushi, quietly but Akutugawa caught it. "You had a purpose only to lose it. While I have never had one."

Atsushi chuckled and it was sad again and Akutugawa hated it. He preferred when Atsushi was genuinely happy. When his smile reached his eyes, his eyes that were kind and shined with light.

Now they looked so empty, so sad.

"You think I'm satisfied but I'm not. I have no dreams, no aspirations, my worth is tied entirely to my ability. I live to spite all those that want me dead, to stop them from taking the tiger if I pass on. I have no purpose, not really."

Akutugawa didn't know what to say, all he could do was nod in goodbye when Atsushi left.

He reached down, picking up the half of orange Atsushi saved for him. That he always saved for him, no matter how hard times got.

"You're wrong" he said to the wind as he walked away. "You're so much more than you're ability."

[nijishinki]

I don’t know about anyone else but:

If you really look at SKK and SSKK, the people who line up in terms of the dark and light side isn’t so much their job position but like…what they started out as.

Sure, you could look at it as one detective/light and one mafia/black but SKK was started when both dazai and chuuya were in the mafia.

Really looking at how they care, to me Atsushi is taking up Chuuya’s role and Akutagawa is taking up Dazai’s in the pair.

Like for one, chuuya and atsushi very much are the half that cares about life. We see it in the way chuuya wants to spare his men and atsushi is pretty self explanatory. They also tend to be the up close, ultimate offense in the pair, running up to deal damage and take damage.

On the flip side, Akutagawa and Dazai (at the time SKK was founded) don’t really care about others lives. They do their job for one reason or the lack of one. They also tend to be the far away, ultimate defense as Rashomon (while can definitely be offensive but to a more effective degree than dazai in regards to ability (because dazai with a gun is probably more dangerous let’s be honest)) usually helps form armor or bolsters the attack the offense is making.

Obviously is not perfect one on one especially since dazai went to the agency, but if you look more at attitude and role in the SKK then that’s what I usually see.

Let me also bring up that both atsushi and chuuya have “uncontrollable” aspects of their abilities as another parallel. Dazai and Akutagawa both have a better understanding of how to apply their abilities. That’s not to say chuuya doesn’t know, he definitely has a fundamental, deep and impressive grasp of his gravity manipulation but going off of just the roles of SKK and what each part of the pair demonstrates especially comparing start SKK to start sskk, is more what I’m getting at.

Though with dazai switching to care more about lives and sort of adding that mafia/detective component to the SKK pair, I wonder if a similar change will be reflected in the younger sskk as well. Will one of them have a sudden change of heart? Or add another layer to the SKK representation? Who knows…..

[basedkikuenjoyer]

Backup Drummer

Right off the bat, we follow up a note from last time. Kuma's upping the ante on being an unreliable narrator. Now we're doing it a second time. A nested flashback. Fun! I love this, same with the idea it's a pointless exercise. Tragic though it may be, the idea these letters never find Bonney is such a great narrative nugget. Type of thing where...well, I was gonna say you see a flash of static that was there intentionally to cover a key detail but we did that one didn't we?

Seeing this flashback start to fray and break down is interesting. We keep seeing it and now I definitely think we'll have shenanigans upon our return. That's not the only bit of narrative peculiarity though. There's another beat that caught my eye even more:

We've done the "static" effect. Covering up a detail with sound effect Kanji. This one feels more like...listening to the radio at the edge of the station's rage. When it starts to intermingle with another station on the same frequency. This is such a weird little blip. "A smart hawk hides its claws" is a great idiom for all this then we shift to a brief moment with Stussy going oddly philosophical. She went too quiet during the time between the cutaway and this flashback, don't forget her. If there's another "Rashomon" break from the main story she might be a good one. Especially with this weird little adjacent element of a potential relative for Kalifa. It is odd how we get Lucci, Kaku, and a replacement girl. Not to mention the three brothers. Sabo was in Vivi's story, Luffy Bonney's, and the OG Stussy has already been around Marco so Ace fitting in isn't that much of a stretch. Still think Rashomon & Riddles is one of my better ones.

Don't forget she gets tied up in the Tamataebako thread too. Bonney is sorta inherently tied up with Urashima Taro by default with that power while we're at it. Likewise with Vegapunk, but that'll be a little secret for later. Which means now we have to get to Bonney's grand escape. That was our deal. Bonney's really horning in as someone who can fill this open role we've identified. What does our story have to say here?

Distortion. Who does "becoming Nika" remind you of? Club, white hair, doggy form, tboy swag...it smacks of Yamato's Oden fixation. Credit where credit's due, I can argue Kiku threads the needle of these Egghead characters, but Bonney's a good mix of Carrot/Kiku/Yamato as well. Still, this plus the narration feel a certain way to me. Like they're really, really reasserting Bonney as a rival. Her own captain. Someone who could have taken Luffy's place if he wasn't here. Fair is fair, our main narrator being unreliable has happened too. With the redacted announcement of the Luffy v Kaido battle. But this makes me wonder how much we'll even focus on Bonney if this flashback continues. Remember she's the third Supernova this arc set up to end her saga.

We'll get to Luffy & Kuma tomorrow, but I have a last thought on Bonney. With all the Thriller Bark elements floating around, did she lose her crew to the buzzsaw of the New World? As in, end up like Moria? Interesting parallel on the table at least. I always thought Yamato was intriguing from the vantage point of like, being perfect if Luffy did blunder into the New World too early and meet the same fate. Yams is a great person to bail you out and start a new crew. Not like anyone wanted that outcome but you can't forget Moria's shadow hanging around. Potentially even literally given the Blackbeard ship could be stolen.

[365days365movies]

31 (Films) to Life: End of Year Round-Up I

Well, here we are: the start of another year of movies!

Geez, 2022 was interesting. Changed up the format from doing daily films and monthly genres, and focused mostly on films in one genre: crime. Aimed for 31 films, and out of that goal hit...24. Which, honestly, not too shabby. Didn't get as many reviews out as intended, but that is honestly OK. Was a busy-as-hell year for me, so I'm pretty well satisfied.

So, what did I see last year, exactly? Well, this post is about to be a round-up, which includes the films I wrote about, and the ones I didn't get the chance to. And at the end, I'll get into my plans for 2023. So, before I hit the "Keep Reading" button, here's the full list of crime films I saw in 2022.

M (1931); directed by Fritz Lang

The Maltese Falcon (1941); directed by John Huston

The Third Man (1949); directed by Carol Reed

Rashomon (1950); directed by Akira Kurosawa

The Killing (1956); directed by Stanley Kubrick

Cool Hand Luke (1967); directed by Stuart Rosenberg

The Italian Job (1969); directed by Peter Collinson

The Godfather (1972); directed by Francis Ford Coppola

Chinatown (1974); directed by Roman Polanski)

Dog Day Afternoon (1975); directed by Sidney Lumet

Taxi Driver (1976); directed by Martin Scorcese

Scarface (1983); directed by Brian de Palma

Once Upon a Time in America (1984); directed by Martin Scorcese

Thelma and Louise (1991); directed by Ridley Scott

Reservoir Dogs (1992); directed by Quentin Tarantino

Casino (1995); directed by Martin Scorcese

Heat (1995); directed by Michael Mann

The Usual Suspects (1995); directed by Bryan Singer

L.A. Confidential (1997); directed by Curtis Hanson

American Psycho (2000); directed by Mary Harron

Catch Me if You Can (2002); directed by Stephen Spielberg

Monster (2003); directed by Patty Jenkins

The Departed (2006); directed by Martin Scorcese

Zodiac (2007); directed by David Fincher

And there you have it! Now, this upcoming short set of summaries (behind the Keep Reading wall) may be a little too long for one post, so we'll split it up a little bit. But in any case, let's get this started!

M (1931), dir. Fritz Lang - 92%

This one, you can check out my full recap and essay about if you're curious, but here's the summary: I loved this movie. Lorre's brilliant as the titular killer, the simple story is well-constructed and effective, the ending is beautiful, and the film as a whole is so impactful. Direction and shot composition is top-notch, the sound and music usage is genuinely revolutionary (having essentially invented the leitmotif), and while it's not the most iconic-looking film, it's still brilliant. PLEASE check this movie out if you haven't already.

The Maltese Falcon (1941), dir. John Huston - 92%

Holy shit, I forgot I tried writing that whole review in noir-speak. Anyway, here's another classic film that I really like! Haven't seen many noir films, especially prior to this year, but this was a great one to start with. Definitely the prototypical noir detective movie, complete with Bogart's private eye, Astor's dangerous love interest, and the twists and turns that come with the genre. Beautifully shot, excellent plot and writing, wonderful music, and great acting. No complaints; check this one out.

The Third Man (1949); dir. Carol Reed - 96%

Holy shit, this movie! Absolutely my favorite Orson Welles performance, and that very much includes Citizen Kane. He's extremely good in this movie, which is a sort of non-traditional noir in a number of ways. The cast is perfect, from Cotten to Valli to Howard to Welles (especially the last one). Plot is perfect, and contains more twists than I know what to do with. Directing is great, if a little overly-tilted at times. Production and art design is beautiful. Music is...a lot of zither music. It's...it's a LOT of zither music. As I'm typing this, the score is BACK IN MY HEAD, and I haven't seen this film in 10 months. Let that shit sink in. And yeah, watch this movie, ASAP, please. You won't regret it, I promise you that.

Rashomon (1950); dir. Akira Kurosawa - 100%

It's a perfect movie. A trope-maker, and revolutionary film in its own right, this movie...dear shit, this fuckin' movie. No words. Nothing needed. Just trust me when I say watch this film immediately. It's stellar. Man, I hit a lot of bangers early on this year.

The Killing (1956); dir. Stanley Kubrick - 90%

First of all, before anything else...fuck Sherry. And secondly, this movie is a great one, too. Still have more Kubrick movies to watch, but this one was absolutely worth it. Nail-biting and anxiety-inducing, yes, but also with one of the strongest plots I've seen thus far this year. A fantastic heist movie, it's only real weak points are a kinda normal production and art design, and sorta forgettable music. Other than that, it's an amazing film that people don't talk about. And, honestly, they really should. Check this one out if you're into heist movies and classic films!

Cool Hand Luke (1967); dir. Stuart Rosenberg - 90%

First one of these I didn't post a review on! And honestly...yeah, I'm OK with that. This Paul Newman vehicle is complicated to describe. On one hand, it's an interesting character study full of interesting characters. Newman's Luke is a great example of a rebellious character forced to face consequences for his actions, only to revert to his original nature, Frog and the Scorpion style. It's technically a trope-originator in that way, or at least a major trope-definer. And with a number of interesting supporting characters, especially George Kennedy's Dragline and Struther Martin's Captain, this is a surprisingly memorable movie...in some ways.

But it also...isn't that memorable? Don't get me wrong, there are a number of moments that come to mind in my head, as well as some shots and compositions that are great (the sunglasses of the Captain come to mind immediately), but it's also not exactly Lawrence of Arabia. Rosenberg and Hall are fantastic as director and cinematographer, for sure, but not always the most memorable and iconic. Also...there's the car wash scene. Like, I get the point of that scene, but it definitely cuts through the tone in a way that puts a weird taste in my mouth. Is it an effective scene for what it's trying to do? Um...yeah. Very, very much so. Possibly TOO much, in fact. And I realize that this is a huge nitpick that shouldn't make me give points off for editing, but it speaks to a weirdly inconsistent tone in some places. That scene isn't the only example of that, is all I'm saying. Still, excellent film, check it out if you're into prison movies.

The Italian Job (1969); dir. Peter Collinson - 92%

Holy shit, this movie is fun! I genuinely love this film so much, even if it has its flaws here and there. Other than being a movie that was absolutely made at the cusp of the 1970s, it's one of the most British heist films I've ever seen. And that's not a bad thing in the slightest, believe me. But, it may be an acquired taste for some. But that said, here are the main things to know. This is a British heist film that stars Michael Caine and features a lot of car tricks, as well as one of the most iconic film endings of all time. And that about covers it. Michael Caine is the most Michael Caine you'll ever see him, and if you ever wondered why he was cast as Austin Powers' father in Goldmember, this movie will make you understand why. Supporting cast is also very good, but everyone takes a passenger seat to the car stunts, which are some of the best care stunts I've ever seen on film. If you want Ocean's Eleven with cars, this is the movie for you. Love this one.

The Godfather (1972); dir. F. F. Coppola - 100%

Cliché? Absolutely. The obvious choice to praise universally? For sure. The most mainstream, boring, dull, basic bitch film I could possibly like? Yeah. Yeah. BUT I DON'T GIVE A SHIT, BECAUSE IT'S FLAWLESS. Even if I didn't think this movie was essentially perfect, there isn't really anything I can say was wrong with this movie, in my inexperienced opinion. Cast and acting? Perfect. Plot and writing? Twisted and perfect. Direction? Iconic and perfect. Production design? Immersive and perfect. Music and editing? I CAN HEAR THE THEME SONG RIGHT FUCKING NOW, THIS MOVIE IS PERFECT. And you gotta understand, I put off watching this movie for YEARS because I thought it was gonna be boring. And then, I watched it. And post watching it? It's amazing. Watch. This. Movie. NOW.

Chinatown (1974); dir. Roman Polanski - 96%

...I saw a lot of good movies this year, OK? Look, this is also an excellent film, despite its reprehensible director. Just divorce the art from the artist and all that, and go into this movie completely blind if you haven't seen it. Taking it from me, it's essentially perfect. Only issues I had were that the Production Design wasn't particularly distinctive, and the music was mostly forgettable after the fact. And those were nitpicks. Watch this movie!

Dog Day Afternoon (1975); dir. Sidney Lumet - 90%

Did...did I watch a bad movie this year? I mean...yeah, I did. Black Adam sucked. And, like...Violent Night was...well, no, I liked Violent Night. Ooh, I was forced to watch Minions 2: The Rise of Gru, which was mediocre at best! I...OK, OK, look, you've heard this before at this point, but...watch this movie, OK? Another heist film, based on a true story this time, as well as being a benchmark in LGBTQ film representation, this film is a great one. Maybe I didn't like an acting performance, maybe the plot wasn't perfectly accurate to real life, maybe the cinematography wasn't always iconic, and maybe it could've used literally any music...but it's a great movie. Watch it.

Taxi Driver (1976); dir. Martin Scorcese - 90%

The "good movie" train keeps chugging forward with this one, because yeah...Taxi Driver is also fantastic. Truly one of the best character dissections I've ever seen, as well as a fascinating look at one of the most dangerous and crime-ridden environments in American history, Scorcese makes a really morally complicated film with...well, frankly, troubling consequences and implications. I didn't put out a review on this one (sorry, got stuck in the wasteland that is my Drafts page), but this film was partially responsible for Reagan getting shot, fun fact. And that may be because the shooter partially identified with Travis Bickle, who is a troubled and fascinating character. And for the record, the rest of this is fantastic as well, but De Niro's Bickle and Scorcese's NYC are the most prominent and most important parts of this movie. Love this one, too. Watch this film if you like character dissections!

Scarface (1983); dir. Brian de Palma - 90%

OK, so...is this the most stereotypical college-age dumb jock poster-in-the-dorm-room movie in the fucking world? Yeah. Yeah, it really is. But is it a great movie despite that? I mean...holy shit, yeah, it's a very good movie. Sure, Italian actor Al Pacino playing a Cuban immigrant is a weird casting choice that's aged poorly in today's sociopolitical landscape...but he's also really fucking good at it. Seriously. Over the top, absolutely, but an extremely enjoyable watch all the same. Watching him slide into depravity and chaos when he already started there is fascinating, and Pacino just EATS the movie with how hard he chews the scenery. Look...it's a fun fucking movie to watch, and that's not even talking about the iconic lines, the supporting cast, the well-structured plot and story, the iconic costumes, and every other enjoyable part of this ride of a movie. I resisted watching Scarface for a LONG time, because I associated it with college-age fuckbois, but...shit, it's a good movie. Watch it if you haven't seen it.

OK, lemme pause here. Part Two coming next!

[hellonoblesky]

tell me anything and everything you want about the execution AU, I love your AU concepts so much and this one seems so interesting but also SO painful and AUGHHHHHHHHHH

HI ECH. MY GOOD FRIEND ECH. Want to know how your favorite boy is doing in this agonizing world ???

SURPRISE: Akutagawa is not doing good. At all.

Dazai and Atsushi's deaths alone are back-to-back blows to his psyche, and the vampirism DOES still happen in this, so he has to grapple with THAT as well (and the guilt of being used as patient 0 for the spread and failing and all that). Also the vampirism due to how it pressed his physical body while he was under it's influence actually made his illness a lot worse #girlboss

Anyway he is dying. He knows he is dying. His body is practically falling apart, and at this point the only hope for his survival would be for him to allow Yosano to repair the physical damage to his body.

(Note: I, personally, see Yosano's skill as being unable to cure illness completely, but being able to repair (some) physical damage caused by it, ex: damaged or ruptured alveoli caused by Emphysema. It won't get rid of the Emphysema itself, but it'll repair the lungs enough to lengthen life expectancy. So Akutagawa could DEFINITELY BENEFIT FROM HER SKILL, though it won't rid him of his lung issue entirely it would loosen the vice grip his shortened life expectancy has on his desperation for approval etc etc )

Yosano, however, is DEAD.

And Akutagawa's lungs are degrading by the day.

He's desperately searching for any reason to do ANYTHING because deep down he doesn't Want to die. He Wants to live. He wants to be there as his sibling gets older he wants to watch out for her. He wants to put obnoxious amounts of sugar in his coffee. He is haunted an agonized by regrets and ironically it's in hindsight and far too late that he realizes that part of why Atsushi made him so very Emotional (be it for angry or gay reasons), is because Atsushi LIVED. Atsushi experienced abuse and his own personal hells and he LIVED and he LIVED FOR THE WORLD and he didn't SUCCUMB TO IT and Akutagawa wanted so very badly to be able to be that, but didn't know how, that even as he's laying on his deathbed spitting up blood from coughing fits that rattle his entire body... he wants to live. And he's clinging to little things with all he has. He's using Rashomon to hold his soup because his hands are shaking to hard and he goes into coughing fits too often to effectively hold it by himself. Gin is at his bedside and afraid of coming home to him gone. He doesn't like seeing her afraid like that.

He dies. Btw. He dies with tears in his eyes and Gin holding his hand.

[kamreadsandrecs]

Title: Fox Tales Author: Tomihiko Morimi (trans. Winifred Bird) Genre/s: horror, short stories Content/Trigger Warnings: body horror, alcoholism (implied), violence Summary (from publisher’s website): WHAT WAITS FOR US BEYOND THE LIGHT’S REACH…? A collection of four spooky tales for the modern era, all tied to a certain Kyoto curio shop. A basket wriggles, a masked man lingers in the shadows, and things are offered, lost, and forgotten. What mysteries lie hidden in the city’s winding streets? Tomihiko Morimi offers an eerie glimpse into the beguiling and mysterious darkness of the old capital. Buy Here: https://yenpress.com/9781975335465/fox-tales/ Spoiler-Free Review: Definitely a collection that will make you think a little differently about Kyoto - which isn’t all that difficult, since I’ve been to the city and wandered around some of the back streets at night in search of a chocolate shop that sells chocolate-flavored sake and I KNOW just how spooky those backroads can be. (In case you all think I’m making this up to be in line with the book: the shop exists. It’s called Dari K, and they have a genuinely wonderful mission supporting environmental protection and Indonesian cacao farmers - though I don’t think they’re selling their chocolate-flavored sake anymore, which SUCKS as I had high hopes of getting it if I went back to Japan again. Their site is here: https://www.dari-k.com/) Anyway: the collection isn’t out-and-out scary, so much as eerie, though there are moments in each individual story where I had to just stop reading and wait for daylight, which means that those moments are ones I find GENUINELY terrifying and therefore I need daylight to mitigate the effect a bit because I am a scaredy-cat. But apart from those individual scenes, what drives the eeriness of the stories in general is how they make the reader question whether or not what they’re reading is true. This is especially true when reading the first story (”Fox Tales”) and the second story (”The Dragon in the Fruit”) one after the other. There’s a bit of Rashomon Effect going on in the interplay between those two, which is a thought I find personally intriguing because of the place Akutagawa Ryunosuke occupies in Japanese literary history, and of course the influence of Kurosawa Akira’s film that gave us the term “Rashomon Effect” in the first place. The third and fourth stories aren’t as tightly connected as the first two, but do share the presence of water and the rivers and waterways of Kyoto. The blurb says the stories are tied to a curio shop, and while said curio shop DOES appear across all the stories, it only really plays a major role in the first two stories and then only a relatively minor role in the third and fourth. In terms of grouping, I think the first and second stories are a more or less coherent set, and the third and fourth stories are another more or less coherent set. Overall, a lovely collection of stories, with just the right notes of eerie and creepy to be enjoyable for someone who’s doesn’t like their horror to be gory and prefers the spookiness to linger instead. I can’t speak to the quality of the translation as I haven’t read the original, but I think Bird has done a pretty good job with it overall, since I didn’t get irritated with the stories at any point. Also: I think these stories would make absolutely scary manga or animated short films, because as I said, some of the scenes are TERRIFYING just reading them from the page, so I can only imagine how much scarier they’d be in the hands of a good mangaka or animation studio. Rating: Five balls of fox fire

[thebookdragonshoard]

August Reading Recap

I read 8 books this month, here they are in order and with ratings + short thoughts. ✨

No Longer Human - Osamu Dazai

5/5 ⭐️ - A long, beautifully written suicide note and introspection to the human condition. I originally picked this book up because of Bungou Stray Dogs and now I’m so glad I did. This book sucker punched me, stole my glasses, and called me a little bitch. Yozo Oba’s struggles with his own humanity, or his believed lack thereof, rang a little too true in my heart. I loved the cynicism Dazai was able to write with while also keeping this poignant. After researching Dazai’s past a bit after finishing this book. I cried. Will definitely be rereading this book again, it’s one of my all-time favorites.

The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins

4.5/5⭐️ - This was my first time reading The Hunger Games, despite being 20yo and this book being a staple in the lives of many in my generation. I only wish I read it sooner. Panem being based on the American Government, the muttations at the very end of the games (seriously wtf), Peeta’s leg. My jaw was on the floor.

The Nature of Witches - Rachel Griffin

4/5⭐️ - I read this in one sitting. I was falling into a reading slump and this book dragged me right out of it. I enjoyed how the main character’s personality and outlook would change with each season as her powers shifted. A very good fall read, in my opinion. I also enjoyed how this book was a commentary on climate change and the effect humans are having on the world.

The Setting Sun - Osamu Dazai

5/5⭐️ - Another five star read for the month. courtesy of Osamu Dazai. once again. He is quickly becoming a favorite of mine. The snake analogy in this book. I am STILL thinking about it a week and a half later. I again love the cynical despair Dazai is capable of portraying while also making this a book that can speak to people of multiple backgrounds, regardless of class. age, gender, or even era. It’s a book that had an impact nearly 80 years ago, and it’s a book that still has an impact now.

The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath

4/5⭐️ - The fig tree analogy kidnapped me, threw me in the trunk of its car, ran over said car with a monster truck, and then tossed the wreckage into the Mariana Trench. Great read that gives insight into the uncertainty of life, especially as a young woman, and the distorted views of the world that can lead to. One girl’s struggle with her place in the world and what she’ll do with her life accompanied by her experience in an asylum and receiving electroshock therapy. However, the ending did leave me a bit unsatisfied with how abrupt and open-ended it was. I have more thoughts on the fig tree analogy posted on my feed, if you’re interested.

Rashomon and Other Stories - Ryunoske Akutagwa

3.5/5⭐️ - Not going to lie. this was a bit of a let down. I’m not usually a short stories kind of girl, but I picked this up because of Bungou Stray Dogs. For the most part, this collection of short stories didn’t have much that stood out to me, but the stories inside are still enjoyable. I found them enjoyable, relatively easy-to-digest short stories and while I admittedly didn’t understand the underlying concept for some of them, I enjoyed them nonetheless. I particularly liked In A Grove and The Martyr (poor Lorenzo.)

Good Girl, Bad Blood - Holly Jackson

3.5/5⭐️ - If you’ve seen my previous posts, it should come as no shocker that I’m not a huge fan of this series. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not that it’s bad! I found it to be an enjoyable read, but I only really started getting into when the plot twist rolled around in the last 50 pages or so. I think all the hype for this series, and this book, gave me such high expectations that the reality didn’t quite compare. However, I did read the American version. We love Stanley Forbes though and that was certainly a tear-jerker.

Seraphina - Rachel Hartman

5/5⭐️ -Once again, another five star read! I love dragons, hence the blog name. And this book was such a unique take on dragons in fantasy that I found it quite refreshing! This book quickly sucked me in and had me falling for the characters in less than 400 pages. Court politics, forbidden love, music, and draconian governments. Plus, a look into the complexities, intricacies, and maladies of emotions. And just how human are they?

✨bonus review✨

I couldn’t finish this post without also including a review for the sequel to Seraphina, which I started the first day of September and finished tonight.

Shadow Scale - Rachel Hartman

5/5⭐️ - Are we surprised by this rating? Well, we shouldn’t be. Once again: dragon lover. With the sequel go Seraphina, we get to dive further into the world of draconian politics and explore the world this wonderful duology is set in. Another thing this book does well is the representation and diversity amongst the characters. SPOILER: There’s even a dash of polyamory sprinkled in with the main character, and as a fellow polyam, this made my heart SOAR. This duology has thoroughly enamoured me and I will never regret spending the $4 at the thrift store to purchase them both. By far my favorite thrifted books to date.

[tothefiniteyou]

:D

Last song listened to: Marina - I Love You but I Love Me More.. before that it was Styx's Renegade though!

Favorite color: it's probably obvious looking at my profile lmao but blue! really love navy blue and black and white, followed by rusty reds

Currently watching: nothing really? i haven't had the time to really commit to anything, so i just kinda rewatch various tmnt episodes here and there. last thing i started was lupin iii but then i just. stopped once college picked up

Sweet/savory/spicy: i don't even have a fraction of a sweet tooth, so definitely savory and spicy. probably spicy overall? i can make a mean cajun pasta

Relationship status: single. idk what else to add to this but it's making me laugh how short this answer is

Current obsession: tmnt is the dominant hyperfix right now so it's kind of overtaking my brain. aside from that though i've been working on growing my music collection! mostly just jewel case cds, hoping to get more vinyls someday (this makes it sound like i have a lot but i have one lol). collecting has always been a bit of an obsession ig

Last Google search: mostly just boring school stuff like stratigraphy-related things,, i also take a film history class so before that i was looking up examples of the Rashomon effect in movies

i don't really have anyone to tag, sorry,, anyone is free to participate, i just get too scared to go out of my way to tag people ajlkrgs

nine ppl you'd like to know better (except i don't think i'm gonna tag 9 ppl in this lmao)

tagged by @chicnstu

last song i listened to: the very first note of touch tone telephone by lemon demon. because i was awake for my alarm and turned it off immediately.

favorite color: green! medium green is the best way i can describe it.

currently watching: mob psycho 100. supposedly (i don't have hulu access anymore & idk where to watch it without getting ten thousand viruses)

sweet/savory/spicy: sweet!!

relationship status: single :3

current obsession: blaseball. still blaseball. slowly getting back into the walten files

last thing you googled: state motto of new hampshire

im tagging (w/ no pressure, as always): @courfeyracs-swordcane (just saw that you already did this! oops) @dale-aficionado-blueberry @ozzyfromthecafeteria and [does quick math] 6 other people who'd like to do this

[nanafilmclass]

Rashomon [Kurosawa Akira]

Initial Thoughts

I really enjoyed the cinematography of this film when first watching it. A lot of the shots had such fluid motions and interesting cuts, I found it hard to look away from the movie because of this. I especially enjoyed the opening scene with the man walking through the mountains because the shots were really dynamic and created tension leading to the big reveal of the crime.A lot of the shots were well done, and kept my attention throughout the movie. The characters and the mystery were also engaging to watch.

I am a fan of murder mysteries so watching this movie kept my mind going the whole time trying to figure out ‘who dun it’. Recently, I’ve been playing a lot of Ace Attorney so my brain was already in a mystery solving mode. I do wish that more evidence was given to the audience so we could have figured out who the true killer is because the ending left me confused on who really did it. The final argument with the thief and the woodcutter implied that the woodcutter had killed the samurai - or at least that’s what I thought was implied? It was definitely implied he stole the pearl knife, so it confused me even more when the priest trusted him with the baby.

My Interpretation

I decided to watch this movie with a friend who informed me that this movie created its own effect. I think it’s really interesting because I have seen this kind of storytelling before, and it was interesting to know it’s place of origin. The Rashomon effect is when a film tells one story through the perspective of multiple characters. I like this style of storytelling particularly for murder mysteries because it suits the story so well. Many people lie in testimonies, so hearing all the contradicting story lines was interesting. It gives us as the viewer unreliable narrators and we have to try and make our own judgment on the situation just as we might do on a jury in court.

Even though this movie was enjoyable to watch, I heavily disliked the way it portrayed women. While I’m aware this film was set in the past it is still a problematic view of women that is still prevalent in society today. It’s this idea of purity in women, that they must remain untouched by other men to be considered pure and perfect. This idea is perpetuated today mainly by Christianity in which saving yourself until marriage is highly praised. Women who sleep around have been compared to chewed gum that is passed around by men. It’s a toxic view because it makes women ashamed of their bodies and feel like they can’t explore their sexuality before committing to a relationship. I am in heavy opposition to this idea that people on general, but especially women, need to stay pure and never have sex with anyone but the person they intend to marry.

I also disliked that not only did this movie portray an outdated view on sex, but it also shamed a woman for being raped. The movie shows her husband being disgusted that his wife slept with another man who forced his way onto her! It made me feel so incredibly disgusted seeing him act that way to his wife who had no choice in that matter. It made it seem like it was the woman’s fault that she was just so desirable she had to be raped and it’s her fault it happened. People still think this today of women who get raped and it’s disgusting to me. I mean the samurai at one point calls his wife a whore for what happened and honestly, I was glad he died because he deserved it after that comment. I don’t know how he could see what happened to his wife and then say that! Even if that was common for the time the movie is set in, it still upset me as a viewer. The wife sort of addressed this when she stood up for herself, and made the men fight each other, but I still felt like her actions perpetrated this pure stereotype.

I also didn’t like that the movie tried to say she wanted that to happen too. When the scene happens where Tajomaru forces himself onto her she “gives in” after a while making it seem like she’s okay with it. That’s such a horrible way to show this scene because it’s a common, and problematic, trope on romance films. The message it sends is that it’s okay for men to force themselves onto women because they will eventually give in because they really do want them. That’s an absolutely disgusting message to send because some men still think this way and this movie would just reinforce that idea within them. It romanticizes this idea that women will just fall over any guy who is strong and forceful because women definitely want a strong, commanding man to dominate them, right? Yeah, no. It gives this idea that women are just prizes to be won and conquered. It objectifies them and takes away their agency to make their own decisions. Even though near the end it seemed the wife wanted to be swept away by another man, and was manipulating the men for her own gain, it still felt like a rather distasteful portrayal of a woman who just wants an exciting life. At least, that’s what I got from the wife’s explanation to do what she did. (No Regrets for Our Youth did it better, just saying.)

In conclusion, I didn’t hate this movie but it did make me mad at many points. I thought the mystery was intriguing and that character acting was so entertaining to watch. The samurai, wife, and bandit all had such entertaining banter. I also enjoyed the scene when the medium spoke for the dead samurai it was cool to see her act as the dead samurai. I also liked that each character spun the story to make them seem more ‘likable’ in a way. Tajomaru made it seem like he was a badass fighter who won a duel fair and square, the wife made herself seem helpless and sympathetic, and the samurai made himself seem honorable and brave. Each story shifted blame elsewhere to make themselves stand out. That’s why when the final man told the story and they all seemed so pathetic it made the most sense that it was the true version. Even though this movie had really problematic views, it was still well made and fun to watch.

[kanmom51]

One of my friends in real life who is a BTS ARMY as well as me didn’t think the ITS2 moment between JK and JM at the table where JK mentioned that he didn’t sleep because he was excited for ITS had any undertones. She kinda dismissed me when I mentioned JM’s pause and smirk and then how they both went in for a toast. She brushed me by saying “well JK did go live for three hours that night” and??? Do we even know for sure that his live was literally the night before they left for filming? I mean he can wear the same pjs more than once… Idk the way she just dismissed me was kind of annoying. I think she thinks I’m delulu but I just don’t think she’s watched as much content as me to notice the difference between them.

I will start by telling you not to get upset over it anon. Each and every one of us look at life through our own subjective glasses. We can watch the same clip and yet see it differently (I keep going back to Rashomon as an example). Our abilities to read situations, to read people, to tell the different nuances, our life experiences, feelings, beliefs, they all effect how we see it. So, your friends not seeing what you do in that moment, it's definitely a possibility. Doesn't mean they are right and you are wrong, and same vise versa.

As for JK shooting his live the night before, well I think we kind of got that one wrong. When we were talking about that possibility we were thinking that JK joined the others later, after the live, but we were proven wrong. He was with them on the bus, and clearly that wasn't the night of his live (timeline doesn't fit). The live was on 30 July at around 2 am. So, not same night as the night they left for ITS 2.

We do not know then the exact date they left for the shooting, and do not know if it was the day after the live or not. It could have been, and he could have been up late because of the live, but just the same it's also possible that the live was days before they left or even after they came back. We don't have enough information to know, other than JK's pj's, and we were proven wrong with that assumption, so...

[pro-fangirls-unsocial-life]

Can I be a funky folk and ask a question??? 😋What is your favorite movie or tv show, aside from Star Wars?

You absolutely can!!❤❤

That is a tough one though. I’m a film major but like... a bad one I guess cause none of my favorites are any of the classics that we have to watch lmao. I chose my favorites based on how much fun I have watching them!

But also, because of that, it is hard to pick just one so I’m going to give you three random ones from my top ten list (excluding Star Wars of course cause those are definitely there lmao)

Movies:

1. Yojimbo (1961) This is probably the one that would be the most acceptable for my film professors. It was made by Akira Kurosawa, who some of you might know as a Japanese director who made quite a few famous samurai films. For all of my fellow Star Wars fans (and maybe other film people lmao), the episode in the Clone Wars and The Mandalorian where the small farming villages are taught how to protect themselves from bandits/pirates is based on his movie Seven Samurai (which is what The Magnificent Seven was also based on). And, the season two episode of The Mandalorian, The Jedi, was heavily influenced by Yojimbo, specifically this scene:

I highly recommend the movie to anyone because it is honestly very entertaining and for my fellow film nerds, the blocking and camera work is stunning (although Kurosawa is a fantastic director and his blocking of scenes is always fantastic)

Another little fun fact, the actor who plays the main character in Yojimbo (as well as many of Kurosawa’s films) was who George Lucas originally wanted to cast as ObiWan Kenobi. His name is Toshiro Mifune.

Another bit of trivia that probably none of you are interested in is that Kurosawa always tries to have an element in every single shot of his movies. The elements always have something to do with the shot, or story as a whole and add another interesting layer to the movie. Like in the shots above, the main element is wind, signifying the turmoil and unrest that is taking place (I won’t spoil the movie for you though❤ the plot is not at all similar to the episode of the Mandalorian so there is no need to worry). In another one of his movies, Rashomon (1950), the element throughout a majority of the movie is rain (water) and it does not change until the mystery of the murder that took place is solved, and the skies become clear. (I also highly recommend that movie as well)

2. Pacific Rim (2013) Ok, this one is just a fun time. There is nothing particularly groundbreaking about it (although the special effects are stunning), I just enjoy it. And, unlike other monster movies, you see the monsters right off the bat. They don’t hide them and the story is honestly really interesting. I just really love this movie. Its fun, the characters are well written and endearing (plus the side characters the gay scientists have a side plot that actually furthers the story, the story is interesting and the concept of drifting is beautifully unique and done very well, the score is phenomenal, and as I said before, the effects are beautiful. They did a very good blend of practical and CG effects and it really pays off in the end product.  Guillermo del Toro really put his heart into this (like he does with all of his projects I am so excited to see his Pinocchio movie) and it really shows. This movie is so good and I will defend it to the end of my days. Also for any of you that are interesting I am currently working on a Pacific Rim Clone Wars AU so... do with that information what you will

Side note, I really wish the sequel was good cause John Boyega is a good actor and deserves to be in a franchise that will use him and his talents properly.  Guillermo del Toro did not direct that one and.... it shows.

3. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018) I cannot shower this movie with enough praise. If you haven’t seen it, you need to. It is one of the most gorgeous, beautiful to look at, piece of art in every single frame thing that has ever been put to film and I will fight people on that (fuck you professor carter). The story is fantastic. The whole movie is a visual masterpiece and you can tell that a lot of hard work and love went into making it that way. Both the score and soundtrack are amazing. It is, in my opinion, the best superhero movie ever made. I could go on for hours about what a masterpiece this movie is. Please go watch it if you haven’t seen it.

TV:

1. Criminal Minds (2005-2020) I know, I know. Everyone loves this show. I know I’m basic. But again, I judge based on my enjoyment of things lol. I just like shows like this. I watch a lot of them NCIS, Castle, Bones, Law and Order. I just find them super entertaining (even if the writing can be bad at times *cough* final season of criminal minds where they tried to do a JJ and Spencer romance *cough*)

2. Face Off (2011-2018) I know there is a Nicolas Cage movie of the same name but this show is fucking awesome. It’s a reality competition show where make up artists are given a new prompt/concept/challenge that they have to do prosthetic make up for. It is so cool to see all of the designs and the process behind them being made. The first season starts off with a bunch of drama like most reality TV, but after that, the competitors are all mostly very kind with one another and it is a very friendly environment. Still a bit stressful because of the time limits but still a fun watch!! 

3. What’s New, Scooby-Doo? (2002-2006) If there is any show that was my childhood (besides clone wars), it is this show. I love this show with my whole heart and Scooby-Doo is very dear to me. Its just a fun kids show. Simple as that. But I absolutely adore it. 

Thank you so much for this!! I really love talking about movies and TV. And if you ask me a simple question, you will most likely get a mini essay as an answer lol.

I’d love to talk about any movie or TV show that you guys ask about though!!! If you ever want to send something in, please do so!!

[animeandfilmotaku]

Akira Kurosawa film recommendations if you play Ghost of Tsushima (or for people who watch the playthroughs like me)

O.K you are here because you stumbled on the name of Kurosawa Mode, which you can play like a 50’s Samurai film with Japanese dub and cool visuals and you are wondering Who The F is he?

So in short, Akira Kurosawa is one of the influential Japanese Cinema directors (known as the Golden Age which was between the end of 40’s-60’s). known for his chiaroscuro cinematography and its awesome action sequences which changed the face of Samurai Cinema (チャンバラ/Chanbara) which itself is a subgenere of Jidaigeki (Which is Japanese period films), so yes he is awesome. However I think you can get lost at this which is why I made the primer, based on what is shown in Ghost of Tsushima and my options.

FYI: if you lived in America or Canada, criterion channel has a Paid service akin to Netflix/Hulu of most Akira Kurosawa films and their translations are not bad,.

Personally if you cannot get your hands on the streaming, like me- Criterion DvDs are great and have fantastic commentaries (and sub translations) by the late Donald Ritche (An influential Japanese film scholar) to his films

The Hidden Fortress

If you love Star Wars watch this shit, and they did it in a everyday man perspective. And plus Toshiro Mifune as the Han Solo dude is not a bad idea

How is it related to Tsushima: So they do focus on the minor characters which you encounter with Jin,  like Kenji for comic relief or Yuna. Plus it has a pretty great female character which is Princess Yuki (There is another one later in Rashomon)

Yojimbo/ Sanjuro (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)

Sanjuro is cited by the game developers, as one of the influences, mostly the end scene of the strikes, I mean yes the blood spurt is delicious… but for real, I prefer Yojimbo as it is a fun character piece and personally one of my favourites from Kurosawa’s filmography -Yojimbo is  basically the definition of chaotic good and Toshiro Mifune’s expressions are such a mod which he complained that he is so done with people’s shit, one of my favourite translations is from the Criterion collection which he screamed that I will turn them into sushi, that was comedy gold.

Yes it influenced Lorne’s spaghetti western films (which unfortunately I do not watch its interoperation) for the cool dude walking in and the title music of Yojimbo is dope.

How is it rated to Tsushima: Ok the wandering samurai trope is used in his films which he solved the problems and pretty much related to Mifune’s character in general though it has a happier ending.

Seven Samurai

Basic bitch introduction to Kurosawa if you do film school and you will get to see how to do good character interactions, and Toshiro Mifune’s character is delightfully charismatic. And I think the moral ambiguity seeps in Tsushima mostly the oldest male character and the peasants. The ending itself is heartbreaking.

High and Low

An underrated Kurosawa, we know him for his Jidaigeki films, but he actually did noir and modern films, a thriller about a chauffeur’s son kidnapping, great visual storytelling and I particularly love the ambiguity of the last scene story wise. The tension is something we need to learn in writing. Plus it echoed a little bit of Parasite..

If I could link it to Tsushima: it is mostly a class divide and Mifune’s character struggling through the ambiguity echoed to Jin’s character development.

Dreams (Yume)

They have martin Scorsese as Van Gogh, sure.. Very hard to chew on-meaning wise but I love the aesthetics of mostly the Kitsune wedding and the Van Gogh sequence, Gosh so good.

Fun Fact: Kurosawa initially wanted to be a painter, but decided film-making was a way to go. I love his use of bright and impressionist style

Ran (Not bad but do not recommend for me personally )

Beautifully shot, the scale is almost David Lean porn style, but story’s pacing is eh.

Oh bonus, if you read King Lear- you know this shit, though he changed the daughters to sons but it would have been cool to having scheming females yo.

Tsushima-wise: if you want coloured period films, you got this- you can do essays of it (Please someone make one for me)

Thorne of Blood

If there is something Kurosawa is being awesome is making Shakespeare pretty dope, which he borrowed from Macbeth which Toshiro Mifune (Yes the films I loved are with him, for good reason perhaps…), if you think that scene when Jin is shot by arrows shot perfectly, this is great stuff (BTW Toshiro Mifune did the stunts by himself so he is indeed a BAMF) I think the opening scene of Tsushima gave me that vibe when I watched Jin being shot by the arrows. I think they pulled it from this film

Rashomon: 

Yes that film has a name in the dictionary, called the Rashomon effect, and it is just wild to see them use the unreliable narrator trope. It was a gorgeously shot film, and the editing was way on point. Watch the Woodcutter’s entrance, it is that great. and Toshiro Mifune being hot in a bandit’s role which he is pretty hot LMAO.

We did have an unreliable narrator on Jin’s childhood flashback, and the moral changes in society can been seen in Tsushima. And plus Norio’s quest kinda fits the monk character in Rashomon

Films I have yet to watch but  I should because it was recommended by many ahahahah

-Ikiru (Have to yet watch)

-Stray Dog (Have to yet watch)-Hot Toshiro Mifune looks floating on tumblr, I need to see.

-Drunken Angel: Again Toshiro Mifune being hot again…I need to watch it though

-Kagemusha (Heard it is amazing)

-The Bad Sleep Well (We have a Hamlet version)

-Dersu Uzala (His first foreign film, unfortunately hard to find)

-Red Beard (The last collar with Mifune and Kurosawa, sad but again yet to watch)

[lifeonashelf]

COHEN, LEONARD

So, here’s the thing: I don’t know anything about Leonard Cohen.

I do own two of his most acclaimed albums, but don’t get too excited. I bought both of them the week of Cohen’s passing solely because learning of his passing made me realize I didn’t have anything by him in my collection, and he’s always been on my radar as an artist I should probably know some things about, you know? I listened to those two discs one day while I was cleaning my apartment or something, and they were lovely and pleasant and sounded great, but then I filed them away on my shelf and that was essentially the extent of my immersion into the world of Leonard Cohen. I know the reissues I purchased are noteworthy entries in his discography, because they’re housed in these rather attractive hardcover digipacks with booklets that feature lengthy contextual essays written by people way smarter than me. I suppose I could read those essays and glean a little information about Cohen that way, but then I’d just be offering you disingenuous regurgitation, and I don’t want to fake anything in these pages; that’s kind of counteractive to the entire purpose of me writing these dumb things. So if you want to read a thoughtful essay about Leonard Cohen constructed by someone who I assume knows enough about Leonard Cohen to warrant being paid to write an essay about him, you should definitely seek out the striking deluxe editions of Songs From a Room and Songs of Love and Hate I’m referring to, because both have essays in them, and they’re printed on glossy paper so they’re probably pretty good (very few crappy essays get preserved on glossy paper).

No one is paying me to write this essay about Leonard Cohen—they’d be pretty stupid to do so, since I don’t know anything about Leonard Cohen—but I have that pair of records and he’s the next artist on alphabetical deck. So here we are.

Actually, you know what? Before we get started, I’m going to go ahead and advise you to just skip this piece altogether.

Hear me out. I can’t imagine this is going to be one of my better entries; considering my not knowing anything about the person I’m supposed to be writing about and all, the odds of my somehow summoning literary gold here aren’t particularly strong. Also, Leonard Cohen is a highly respected artist, and based on the listening I’m doing right now, he definitely deserves that respect—I’m on my second spin of Songs from a Room and it is an absolutely beautiful record. But what am I accomplishing by telling you that? You probably already know Songs From a Room is an absolutely beautiful record, and if you don’t, you should totally listen to it right this minute instead of reading anything I might observe about it, because the album is a whole lot better than this essay is going to be. I’ve been down this road before, so I can tell you exactly what’s about to happen here: I’m going to keep prattling on with gibberish just like this and end up embarrassing myself by blowing yet another chance to write something substantial about a substantial artist. I guess I could comment on how much I like the two Cohen songs that were used to bookend the mindfuck of a film Natural Born Killers or something, but what purpose will that serve? There, I commented on it, and biting into those ‘member berries hasn’t magically ignited some spirited dissertation, has it? Look, I’m saying this because I care: I really think you should call it quits on this piece right here and now, before you get in too deep. I’m already doomed, but it’s not too late to save yourself. Run, go, get to the choppah. Fly away, Clarice, fly fly fly. ‘Member?  

Okay, you’ve been duly warned. So if you do decide to continue on, I’m not going to feel terribly bad about wasting your time, especially since I essentially just promised you anything I write from this point forward is going to be a waste of your time. I mean, everything I’ve written so far has also been a waste of your time, but I haven’t written that much yet. And at least the stuff I wrote so far has served a purpose: it cautioned you that everything to come is going to be an even bigger waste of your time. I can’t promise any of the supplemental paragraphs I’m about to compose will be worth even that much, so I really have to advise you to take a moment here and consider your situation carefully. Weighing everything I’ve just told you about my not knowing anything about Leonard Cohen (and, just to be clear, I’m not playfully minimizing that disposition; I honestly don’t know shit about him), along with my stated unambiguous surety that I am about to waste an indefinite amount of your time (you must be familiar with my work by now; it’s totally plausible this thing could end up running 15 pages)—do you really want to read any of more of this? It’s still not too late to back out. Your time investment thus far is minimal. You can just move right along to the next piece (it’s about Coldplay, so I’m sure that essay is going to be way funnier than this one). My feelings won’t be hurt, I promise. I can hardly fault you for not reading this, because there isn’t any reason at all you should read this. Unless you just really enjoy reading these entries in general, but that seems highly unlikely because nobody enjoys reading them—shit, I only enjoy every fifth one or so, and I write the fucking things.

Check it out: usually by this point in a composition, I would be painstakingly rereading what I’ve written so far to make sure I’m off to an okay start, right? But I haven’t done that in this case because I already know everything I’ve written so far is garbage. This piece isn’t going to improve, either. And that’s what I’m really trying to get across to you here: I am woefully ill-equipped to write anything about Leonard Cohen that is as excellent as his music—I just listened to Songs of Love and Hate a couple times, and holy shit, that’s an absolutely beautiful record too. You may assume I’m continuing this obnoxious diatribe because I’m setting you up for some grand gag (granted, it’s a fair guess, because I’ve done that a few times in entries past). But I’m not joking when I say that I’m not joking in this instance. This rambling philological self-fellation is not going to coalesce into something worthwhile; it’s just going to go on and on like this until I decide I’m done fucking with you and then this essay will just sort of… end, without preamble or satisfaction. I’m telling you, if you keep reading this, you are going to be super pissed off when you finish it. You’ll get to the conclusion, and you’ll grumble, “That’s it…? That was stupid.” And you will be right, because that will be it and it will be stupid.

Since that will be transpiring soon, we should probably clarify that at this point, when it does it’s going to be entirely your fault. If you go all the way back to the beginning of this twaddle, you’ll clearly see the very first thing I wrote was, “So, here’s the thing: I don’t know anything about Leonard Cohen.” That was the opening fucking sentence, dude. Seriously, what did you think was going to happen after that? And only a few lines later, I wrote: “I’m going to go ahead and advise you to just skip this piece altogether.” Then came that whole part about how reading this was going to be a total waste of your time, blah blah blah. You can check if you want; it’s all totally in there. I’m sure you didn’t think I’d be reprinting complete sentences you already read—and, you know what, yes, that’s kind of a low blow, I’m realizing now—but after I took the time to explain in detail that this essay would likely end up serving no purpose whatsoever, surely that must have given you pause. I mean, didn’t you think to yourself, “Wait a minute, before I read this essay, is it going to serve some purpose?” As I’ve made abundantly clear, the answer is: No. No, it is not. I was pretty up front about that. In fact, I specifically told you not to read it—“there isn’t any reason at all you should read this”; is that ringing a bell at all? So if you are still reading it, that’s kind of on you, dude. Sure, I could have stopped writing a long time ago and spared you from all of this bullshit, but let’s not get caught up in semantics.

Have you seen the movie Reservoir Dogs? I’m assuming you have, but if you haven’t, you can add that to the list of far more fulfilling things you could be doing right now instead of reading this essay. Anyway, the film is centered around the aftermath of a jewelry store robbery gone horrifically wrong. We don’t actually see the caper take place, but the characters reference it enough along the way for us to get a clear sense of things devolving into a bloodbath after one of the robbers, Mr. Blonde (played by Michael Madsen) shoots numerous people inside the establishment. Is it coming back to you now? Good. There’s a reason I’m bringing this up.

Since Madsen is absent for a lot of the movie, the audience’s understanding of the storyline relies mostly on what the characters played by Steve Buscemi and Harvey Keitel share with us about what has occurred. Their perspective is clear: Mr. Blonde went crazy and started killing people, and that’s why the whole heist went tits up. However, when Madsen finally appears at the warehouse where the bulk of the plot’s action takes place, he presents an entirely different assessment of the exact same incident. It is here that the movie shifts into the subtle employment of a narrative device known as the “Rashomon Effect,” so-named because this formula’s introduction to Western film-goers is commonly credited to the 1950 Akira Kurosawa film Rashomon—a picture which we can assume in hindsight Reservoir Dogs creator Quentin Tarantino was consciously invoking since his filmography has since revealed a heart-on-sleeve fandom for the work of that storied Japanese director (several Tarantino flicks make reference to this allegiance, but his Kill Bill films in particular are at their core unashamed modern reimaginings of Kurosawa’s legendary Samurai epics). I won’t recount the entire plot of Rashomon, since doing so would be superfluous here (as opposed to all of this shit I’m writing about Reservoir Dogs, which is obviously vitally important to this essay about Leonard Cohen). All you really need to know for our purposes is that the crux of the story is a singular event which is assigned completely disparate interpretations by the various people in the film who witness it.  Which is precisely what happens when Michael Madsen makes his entrance.

Now, I’ve seen Reservoir Dogs many times, but not enough times to have the dialogue faithfully memorized; you’ll have to forgive me if I paraphrase a bit here. Essentially, Keitel’s character calls Mr. Blonde a “maniac” or something to that effect, a designation based on Madsen’s character opening fire upon one of the store’s clerks for what Keitel perceives as “no reason at all.” Madsen’s response to this slanted accusation is fascinating. In direct repudiation of his labelling as a “maniac” seconds before, he continues calmly drinking his soda as he amends Keitel’s analysis of the murder by providing a remarkably lucid and utilitarian explanation for the killing: “I told her not to press the alarm, but she did. If she hadn’t done the thing that I told her not to do, then I wouldn’t have shot her.”

It seems we are sharing our own Rashomon moment, my friends. You may feel like your time has been wasted, and it certainly has. But I am not the one who wasted it. That was you. I told you not to read this essay, but you did. If you hadn’t done the thing I told you not to do…  

Mr. Cohen: I am truly sorry. Your music is stunning, and you deserve far better than this.

As for the rest of you: I mean, dude, I fucking told you.

 March 31, 2019

[lala-pipo]

(1/18) *peeks from behind the wall* I hope I am still welcomed here hahaha cricket anon is here! <3 I am very sorry for making you worry last time O.O, for sure no matter what happens to the story, I'm going to be right there to read it! Huehuehue, I literally was not lying when I mentioned that this story is bringing me lots of joy this year :3 Cricket anon is fine now! hahaha my last work place was really bad, kind of black-company-level-bad, and it really took a toll on my mental health…

Dear cricket nony, I already answered one of your non-anonymous asks privately because I was so overwhelmed by the sheer amount of email notifications I got from tumblr and Ao3 that I had to thank you right away, but I still want to do it publically because even after days I’m still overwhelmed that you took so much time to write me a whole essay. I’m still all soft and wobbly and squishy on the inside. Your notifications really made my day, week, probably month – so thanks so much again. It really means so much T___T

(2) so, I kind of took two months? break from social media and just literally try and figure out my life lol basically quarter-life crisis also happening, but yeah slowly getting better now! I hope you are doing fine as well, sending you lots of hugs and love ~^^~ Firstly though!! I wanted to say sorry too that it took a while for me to reply hahaha… BUT!! Let me tell you omg during my rest of 8 weeks, I have managed to re-read ALL. SEVEN. CHAPTERS!! So many things to share!!

I’m so sorry to hear that your last workplace took such a toll on your mental health and I really hope that you are going to get better. I cross all my fingers for you and send you good vibes only. Please don’t feel pressured to comment at all. I mean everyone loves receiving comments, but it shouldn’t feel like a chore. So if you feel like sharing your thoughts I’m always glad to read them, but if you don’t feel like sharing them, please don’t feel bad about it. <3

(3) However, since my comments were a grand total of 4,000 words lol, I inserted them in AO3 under "cricket anon" in every chapter! :3 You might get confused as you read them because I take notes as I read the chapter lol hahaha I hope my comments might bring some joy <3 Ahh! By the way! These anon messages are partly not anon since anon asks are limited to 10 per hour? I didn’t know that! :( But since I accidentally have revealed myself to you lol I think it should be okay!

I’ll also try to answer your comments on Ao3 in the upcoming days because (if I remember correctly) you had some questions and I hope I can answer some of them. ^^ But I’m impressed that you went through all the chapters again. We’ve reached 150k now, which is quite fascinating to me because there are still quite a few chapters left. I wonder how long the story will be in the end *hides* I didn’t know that either! I’ve been on tumblr for so long and yet this 10 ask limit is new information for me, but it makes sense in some way – if I think about spam accounts or people going around spreading hate or something.

(4) Also, I think I’m going to make my snorts reactions straight onto AO3 from now on, rather than spamming your ask box with 10+ anon messages hahaha but I’ll still come here to share you my overall reactions and analyzations huehuehue and also to possibly warn you about the length of the comment lol something I noticed, from chapter 1 to chapter 7, the comment got longer lol more things to discuss about, I guess!? But yeah!! Let me reply to your reply to my previous ask here!!

LMAO I admire your dedication. Do whatever is most comfortable to you, I will be happy either way ^^ I think it makes sense that someone can comment more on later chapters because the painted picture gets fuller and fuller with details, there is more information about the different characters, the storyline is more developed and so on… ^^

(5) Is the sad scene in chapter 6, you were referring to the conversation that Jong-Taem were having, and then Jong tried to diffuse it into another lighthearted banter, and Taem is just. tired. of. Jong avoiding the conversation? and despite all that, Taem still let Jong come into his room and cuddle to sleep? idk... I find that scene really heartbreaking :( or maybe it was another scene?

For me it was the shower scene tbh. I don’t know, but it always struck something inside of me (is it weird that I’m saying this although I’ve written it?) There is something very fragile about Jonghyun in that scene and Taemin does feel a little helpless and is so caught up in his own thoughts, in his own needs, what he wants (and doesn’t get from Jonghyun) and yeah – it always makes me go :( but yes, the follow up scene is sad as well because you sit there and think – you two are just so damn dumb, which is something most people, who read this story so far – seem to think constantly, because yeah, they are very dumb – each in their own way. ^^

(6) I think I mentioned in the AO3 comment somewhere that even I started to feel like Taem can just leave Jong because Jong is not trying to understand Taem, I mean, nothing to do with his mood swings or his claim that Taem will get bored of him, just that he isn't trying to see things from Taem's perspective whereas Taem is trying! so! hard! and he even tried to ignore the fact that Jong avoid the vital conversations for like the 10th time already :(

Feelings are a very difficult topic – and while chapters 1-9 are very focused on what Taemin does, thinks, wants, needs, wishes etc. the focus does shift a little over to Jonghyun starting from chapter 10. So the reader does get an inside of why Jonghyun might have acted the way he did. If his behavior makes sense is up to the reader (and Taemin as well) to decide – but I think it shines a little more light onto Jonghyun, who the reader doesn’t know much about – feeling wise –, although he’s one of the main characters of the story. ^^ It’s the onion layers that get peeled one by one. ^^

(7) Yeah, re-reading this definitely showed me muCH MORE parallelism in Jong-Key and Taem-Jong dynamics. Even with Taem's mood in a sense? Like how Jong used to be really upset when Key has a new friend, and then suddenly okay when they do sexy times. Before, I only noticed the puppy-love-ness parallel, but then there is more to it, like I said, Taem's mood affected by Jong a lot, just like Jong's by Key, and also the way Jong claims that Key doesn't understand his feelings,

(8) well, it applies to Jong not really wanting to understand Taem's feeling? by just brushing it off as Taem will get bored of him or Taem doesn't know what he is talking about. I mean as a reader, I am also not sure, if it’s either Jong doesn't care or he is scared to show himself or both or maybe there is another reason? Hahaha ^^;;

This is true and done on purpose. ^^ This knowledge doesn’t play a key (haha) part in the storyline, but it is there to show how blinded one can get by one’s own feelings. After adapting to his new life in a dorm Taemin sees through Jonghyun and Kibum’s relationship quite well, but later when it’s about his own relation to Jonghyun he’s completely blindsided and doesn’t see how unhealthy it is at first – him going back and back and back over and over again in the hope that Jonghyun’s behavior towards him might change.

(9) You mentioned that there will be more Jongtae drought, and honestly, I think they need it? I think some space for them to think about things and you know do other things and talk to other people about other things lol maybe it will clear up their heads hopefully? Ahh!! You said the beginning of chapter 5 is for your own sanity lol I totally understand ;), it was a very sweet scene, soft, and kind of endearing compared to what is coming in the next chapters TnT

It depends on how we describe the drought. The hard cut was done in chapter 8. I went in like a warrior and just cut all the strings, not showing any mercy. ^^” I don’t want to spoiler anything, but yeah – the hard drought will continue throughout chapter 9 – soft drought from chapter 10 …… till ….. *closes mouth* 6v6 

Working on chapter 8 made me write two lovey-dovey JongTae oneshots because I couldn’t stand seeing them fight in my own fanfic, in front of my salad. T_T so yeah, the beginning of chapter 5 was for my sanity. While writing chapter 8 I also realized again while I never really write angst, fights – anything dramatic really, because I’m a very chill person in real life, and I like my fanfics to be very chill as well – so writing this was completely out of my comfort zone. For others it’s writing smut for me it’s writing angst lmao. I usually want to wrap up all the characters in fluffy blankets and make them tea, and yet here I am – letting Taemin suffer for so many chapters. I’m a monster T_T

(10) Yeahhh, about the fact that we don't see Key so much since it is in Taemin's point of view, and also the fact that our (the audience)'s perception of Key is very much influenced by how Taem sees Key, right? I think I even mentioned somewhere in the comments, that in a way, a Rashomon effect is present as the readers read the story right, since they are all on accounts of Taem's witnessing, but then also maybe I am just reading too much into this lol

It would be the Rashomon effect if I wrote the same fic out of Jonghyun’s perspective and Minho’s as well for example. In this case Taemin is just a very unreliable narrator and we don’t (well I do :’D) but the reader doesn’t know what’s really going on, if everything Taemin is experiencing is true or if it should be taken with a grain of salt. Considering that everyone in the dorm, except for Taemin, gets along well with Kibum, we might want to believe that Kibum isn’t the bad guy Taemin wants to make him out to be. ^^

(11) Honestly, I could hear my English Lit teacher saying "maybe that is not the author's intention" hahaha xD Yes yes yes!! more chapters for Taem's development!! I am ready for it!! I mean the end of chapter 7 marked the sign of the broken vase, and paired with the JongTae drought, I am looking forward to the next part of the story!! Some character development at this point is perfect I think!! And also!! About the advices, I think I commented a few times on some of the chapters.

(12) I didn't notice that before! And after you pointed it out, I think I made some comments on Minho's, Key's, and Onew's advices to Taem and definitely, based on how the events unfolded, we could argue that the advice was bad - in a way though, I can't seem to tell (yet, maybe?) if the advice giver was genuinely trying to help or do they have ulterior motives? hmmm but either way, I like how you placed a lot of thoughts in the story, even on things such as advice.

(13) Because for sure, in reality, people tend to give bad advices, and act on bad advices. It is true that most fics tend to focus only on the good advice and then the story ends happily ever after. Real life is most definitely not like that :3 your "slice of life" tag is holding up to its name ;) Thank you so much for your hard work!! You added 10,000 words for chapter 7?? omg… huhuhu (insert a bowing LINE sticker)... yeah, for sure, the way the story unfolds in my head,

(14) probably is different to other readers, right? And for sure, very different to you, the author! There are probably a lot more instances, scenes, implications, interpretations? that we as readers are unaware of! Thank you so much for all your hard work TnT, as readers, having more context into the story does give much more clarity on the flow of the story and the feelings of the characters, etc. Thank you for all your hard work! (bow bow bow)

That was something @hwarang-number commented on as well while betaing the story. What if Minho has ulterior motives?!?!?!?!? In Minho’s case it does make sense to give out bad advice to lure in the innocent lamb haha but for example what would Jinki’s or Kibum’s ulterior motives be? Sometimes people want to give out good advice, but in the end it just turns out to be bad advice – unintentionally – humans are just humans after all – and none of us is all knowing, we all perceive things differently, and what might work for one person might not work for the other. I did add 10k to chapter 7 and 25k to chapter 8 – because chapter 8 felt like the most incomplete out of all the chapters in this story. 

I think I’ve mentioned it before but hwarang_number is super attentive while reading and figured most things out that I’ve implied – even smaller details which I thought might get lost in the chapters – which I’m still impressed by, but I also said before that everyone reads stories differently, and some aspects that might not be important to me as the author of the story might be important for the readers and the other way around. For the past chapters I just tried to fill in the gaps that might confuse readers unnecessarily. In the original draft of chapter 8 Taemin is doing the deeds with Minho far more spontaneously because he’s so frustrated with Jonghyun – it made sense like that as well – but I think his frustration got more depth through the added scenes. :)

(15) Ah!! By the way!! Please don't feel like you are forced to reply to all of my messages! Having you read them already makes me happy! I don't want to make it feel like an obligation to you because... well omg my comments like super loooooong hahaha ^^;; And yeah!! Take your time with the next chapter by the way!! I am rooting for the development of the story no matter how it will go :3 I will be waiting for the next update (though no pressure, just want to put it there haha)

Dear cricket nony, if you write me 50 message I will still try to answer all of them ㅎㅅㅎ I might just take a little longer. I hope you will like chapter 8 as well, despite the drought ^^

(16) Next time, this cricket anon will bring some more noise ~ I hope your real-life stuff works out well too :D Once again, thank you for answering all of my messages, and for writing this awesomely written fanfiction! While I wait for the next chapter, I think I'm going to re-read songs of siren hehehe :3 Please stay safe!

Please do! Song of Sirens is definitely a story I would have loved to treat like “Dorm Life” in a sense that it would have turned out better if I had worked on it longer, but I’m still a fan of the big brain energy I had running through my veins when I came up with the mythological aspect of the story…lmao So I hope you will enjoy re-reading it. ^^ Chapter 8 is longer than Song of Sirens (just as a side note haha)

(17) Ah!! I forgot to mention!! After I re-read it, my most favorite literary device that you used in this fanfiction (lol this commentary is beginning to sound like a Literature essay) is the Biblical Allusions? I am not sure if this was your intention, but the juxtapositions of Bible verses or reference to God, in Taemin’s thought reminds me heavily of Taemin’s songs, particularly Heaven? It be a sexy time song if you look at the lyrics, but the composition is that of a choir church song

(18) I find the contrast chilling, and maybe you were trying to invoke that feeling to the readers? Orrr maybe I am perhaps, indeed, reading too much into this hahaha ^^;; but really! I really enjoy reading your fanfictions and coming up with analyzations, it’s very fun, and the fact that I can discuss or ask you questions about it is just makes it even more fun – since in Literature classes we can’t actually ask the author of their true intentions right hahaha okay!! I am done :3 Thank you!! <3

It was my intention and still is, so I’m glad you picked up on that. ^^ I always wanted to write a fanfic in which Taemin’s religion plays a role – even if it’s just on the side – I always make some references to Dante’s circles of Hell (when Taemin is being dramatic again) or I also made a reference to Hieronymus Bosch’s painting The Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things in chapter 8. (I’m a big fan of his work – that dude was wild – the way he painted blows my mind every time I look at one of his paintings). So yes, dramatic Taemin talking about religion and throwing around with biblical references is my brain being wild. ^^ 

I would say that ‘Dorm Life’ is not a really deep story, but I did put a lot of thought into it to not make it your regular smut/romance fanfic. I mean it took time, still does – but I’m glad when people, like you dear cricket nony, appreciate it. So thank you so much for your kind words and sending me all your thoughts and interpretations. <3 I hope you will have a lovely December – please stay healthy and please take good care of yourself. <3