#say what you like about mendes but man does he make a visually striking movie

[weidli]

MOVIE THAT SAYS. what are you if you are not your father. and what is your father if he is not his hands

[freelancearsonist]

February Fic Recs!

Hi everyone! I’ve realized that part of the problem with interaction within the fic community is that not as many larger creators are doing their part to reblog and recommend fics like they used to when I first joined Tumblr. And while I wouldn’t really consider myself a “large” blog, I still want to do my part to help boost my fellow creators :) So here’s a list of what I read this month!

02.01 // “a letter addressed to the manager of the letter room” by @propertyofabelmorales (Richard Alsonso-Munoz) // I’ve read this at least three times omg because it’s currently the only Richard content we have and it’s wonderfully written and the letter format is unique but really interesting and so fitting given the character so yeah 10/10 please keep ‘em coming Vic 😂

02.02 // “Walls that Come Down” by @houseofthirst (Nathan Bateman) // this made me horny and made me cry at the same time and I think it’s really unfair that you have the power to do that to me tbh 😂 This is so wonderfully written and such a beautiful take on Nathan’s character and ugh lemme go cry in my corner

02.03 // “Meet Me on Endor” by @autumnleaves1991-blog (Poe Dameron) // “You are so beautiful, all the time” made me tear up a little bit because it’s so distinctly Poe and I also horny cried because god I’d give anything for this man

02.04 // “In the Night” by @jawabear (Santiago “Pope” Garcia) // this was emotional and beautiful and sexy all at once and it made me cry a lil bit in bed at 2am and honestly I thank you for it

02.05 // “Something About You And I” by @sacklerscumrag (Poe Dameron) // This was beautifully written and also so so so sexy and I realized I might have a bit of unresolved bondage kink while reading this so thanks for that 😂

02.06 // “The Night That Follows” by @roanniom (Poe Dameron) // I found this kind of by accident and then it turned out to be one of the most beautiful fics I’ve ever read in my life??? I’m seriously like trembling how can someone pack so much talent into one sexy fic I’m—

02.07 // “The Punishment” by @mandorush (Santiago “Pope” Garcia) // This is so fucking sexy what the fuck and then I found out it’s a whole series??? Yeah so needless to say my 2am binge was entirely worth it omg 🤤

02.08 // “Dessert is on the Counter” by @nathan-bateman (Abel Morales) // I read this before you posted to make the moodboard but I’ve legit reread like seven times since then omg. A quality fic in every way. 10/10

02.09 // “Affection” by @wasicskosgirl (Llewyn Davis) // This is one of my all-time favorite fics for my favorite man 😭 everything about this is so cute and I would literally die to snuggle with this sweet boy 😭

02.10 // “Tell Me” by @rebellou (Poe Dameron) // I don’t even know what to say omfg this is one of the hottest things I’ve ever read in my life and I’d like this fic chiseled onto my gravestone so I have something nice to take with me into the afterlife

02.11 // “Romantic Dreams” by @witchyavenger (Santiago “Pope” Garcia) // Yeah I want this holy hell this was so spectacularly written and so sexy and 😩 god I can’t even have kids but I wish he would breed me omg

02.12 // “Pressing Camera Questions” by @youvebeenlivingfictional (Nathan Bateman) // Omg this is so wonderfully constructed, even as something of an introductory piece to this series. I’m so excited to see what comes!

02.13 // “Free Fall” by @michaelperry (Mikael Boghosian) // There’s so little fic for Mikael on this site and so finding this kinda felt like striking gold 😂 especially because it’s so wonderfully writing and so sexy and 🤤

02.14 // #valentines fic tag by @propertyofabelmorales (Literally every Oscar Isaac character) // I got to read so many amazing fics today because of the Valentine’s fic exchange but shit dude you went above and beyond!! I wanted to only plug each author once on this fic rec calendar but there’s no way I couldn’t give you a shout out for this. Even in addition to your piece for the fic exchange you wrote so much incredible fic for literally every character I can think of (including Marcus!!!!!!!!! As I’m writing this you haven’t even posted his yet but I saw his name on the list and I’ve been having heart palpitations ever since) so yeah explore this tag because there’s fic for literally everyone and it’s all so wonderfully written and *chef’s kiss*

02.15 // “ghosts” by @unstoppableforcce (Javier Peña) // This one gave me CHILLS omfg this is just the first part and I was rolling on the ground. Everything about this is so beautifully constructed and haunting and UGH this is amazing 😭

02.16 // “Pretty” by @waatermelon-sugaar (Blue Jones) // Holy shit this unlocked like seven kinks that I didn’t even know I had 🤤 this was so wonderfully written and so sexy and realistic? Idk if that’s a good descriptor but like I could feel everything you were describing sdkfdkfjdkfj I LOVED THIS

02.17 // “home.” By @pascal-isaac (Llewyn Davis) // Look I wish I was kidding when I say that I’ve read this fic upwards of seven times sdkjskdjskd this is one of my all-time favorite fics and it only gets hotter with age 😩 this fic is like a fine wine and I would like to have it inscribed on my tombstone when I inevitably escape from this plane of existence

02.18 // “Turning to the Dark...” by @mylifeisactuallyamess (First Order!Poe Dameron) // If I’m being honest I’m not usually a fan of darker fics but this one worked for me. It was so sexy and honestly kind of beautiful in the way you describe the interrogation and later Poe’s willful turning. I really enjoyed this and will probably read again 🥺

02.19 // “My Best Decision” by @knivesareout​ (Javier Peña) // Fuck guys I’ve had baby fever like a motherfucker this month and this made it so much worse 😂 Dad!Javi is so fucking cute omg and this fic was SO SEXY and it really hit all of my bases 😩

02.20 // “my sweet baby” by @writingletterstothefire (Santiago “Pope” Garcia) // Look I’ve read this fic 293394 times and it’s good EVERY TIME. Dirty Dancing is the good kush and this fic made my obsession with that movie like 1000 times worse omfg. I read this every time I’m in a bad mood and it just puts a smile on my face so fast omg I would literally beg for a longer version

02.21 // “Sounds of Silence” by @veuliee2 (Orestes) // This fic? This fic right here? Lives rent free in my mind. To the truest capacity of the statement. I wish I was kidding when I say that not a single day goes by where I don’t think about this. I don’t even really know what to call this? Maybe Something along the lines of associates to lovers? Whatever this qualifies as it’s literally one of my absolute favorite fics of all time and I will never forget the way you shattered and mended my heart with one story

02.22 // “Mr. & Mrs. Cooper” by @aellynera (Bud Cooper) // THIS IS BRILLIANT THE ENTIRE WAY THROUGH ok first of all that this is like one of two fics for this character 😂 but also this is the most beautifully, ironically constructed fic ever? Everything about this is entirely grasping and there’s THREE PARTS that are all just as good as the rest and 😩 I literally couldn’t ask for a more perfect fic

02.23 // “Catch” by @ollypopp (Poe Dameron) // This is a short drabble but I had to include it because DAMN this is so sexy and wonderful for such a short piece and I’ll be thinking about this for the next month so thank you 😂

02.24 // “Blooming most recklessly” by @writefightandflightclub (Evgeni Kolpakov) // This is so beautifully written while simultaneously being so sexy???? How do you do it Luna I am forever in awe of your talent 😭 I can just visualize everything he says and does so clearly and I’m so in love with this piece 😭💛

02.25 // “falling for you” by @luminouspoes (Poe Dameron) // This is the cutest thing ever wtf 😭😭 The pining is so strong even though it’s short and it’s just all around so wonderfully written and I must go cry in my corner now

02.26 // “Liability” by @honeymandos (Nathan Bateman) // THIS WAS GORGEOUS WTF I’m crying over some soft Nathan in this house tonight 😭 I was legit so worried for a while that he’d send reader away but then he CAVED and my heart sang hallelujah—

02.27 // “electric spark” by @woakiees (Duke Leto Atreides) // Hi I need everyone to read this please so it can destroy your body and live in your mind and occupy all of your waking thoughts like it does for me k thanks

02.28 // “The Child” by @starryeyedstories (Poe Dameron) // This was the sweetest thing ever what the heck 😭😭😭 I am eternally sobbing over this lil found family-ish vibe and dad!Poe is literally everything I’ve ever wanted and UGH I have to go cry for the next month

[chaoskirin]

Freddie and I share something in common - we both went to school for fine art. I earned my bachelor's degree in 2005. At times, I wonder if he ever got tired of the formal education, too. I wonder if he also laughed when his film teacher told him that "after this class, you'll never watch a movie the same way again" and then realized later with horror that it was actually true. How color theory takes over your life even when you don't mean it to. How everything you see makes you wonder if you could draw that, and what technique you would have to employ.

I don't know. I was ten when he died and I'll never get to ask. Somehow he doesn't strike me as the kind of person who would want to talk about his own art, anyway. I mean, there's not much we know about Freddie's private life, but everyone says he was shy.

So when I sat down and thought about what to do for Freddie's birthday, I thought analyzing one of his greatest works of art would be a good place to start. I had to pick apart and appraise so much art in school, whether it be my own classmates' paintings or pieces in a museum, or even poetry. And what are all Freddie Mercury's songs but poetry? In any case, it felt like a good tribute to him to analyze "It's a Hard Life."

British "Promo videos" were the prototype for today's visual extravaganzas, and were really meant to provide a simple visual aid to the music. Michael Nesmith says in his book, Infinite Tuesday, that they weren't meant to have much thought or money poured into them. The name of the game was getting a band on stage and recording them, which would then, theoretically, promote more sales. But they evolved, as things tend to do.

Music videos seem absolutely mundane today. A hit single has a music video, and people watch it, and it kind of gets swept under the proverbial carpet and filed away in our collective mind. Sometimes, the really good ones stand out, but more often than not, it's just some thing that's expected. It almost feels ludicrous to think that music accompanied by video wasn't the industry norm.

But in the 1980s, music videos were just becoming valid as a means of expression, and many artists had no idea how to exploit them as an art form. Even Queen did a song supporting the idea that video was killing radio. There were a few who believed that music videos were the way of the future (See again: Michael Nesmith who started down a path that would one day lead to MTV) but to others, they were just a fad, or even something to be resisted.

But in reality, music and video accompanied each other in various forms for years. The first motion pictures themselves were set to music - usually live - because watching a film in silence would have been utterly boring! (Note - artist opinion. I can't cite that, but I stand by my assumption.) Then in the 1960s, the Monkees performed "romps" on their TV show that became the precursor for modern music video. Later, just before MTV came into existence, came "Video Killed the Radio Star."

Since that short foray into music video history is out of the way, it's time to discuss Freddie Mercury.

Of course, Queen did other music videos before "It's a Hard Life." Some were quite artistic, and even Bohemian Rhapsody - which was one of those aforementioned "Promo Videos" - had quite a lot of skill that went into its production. The point is, Freddie seemed to detest the mundane. He wanted something that would make a mark and stand out among everything around him.

In the audio commentary for "It's a Hard Life," Brian May said that the video was a "Freddie indulgence, and we indulged him." He wasn't seeing the endeavor as Freddie did, however. This project was more than an indulgence -- it was a beautiful song, with beautiful lyrics, and there was a real chance to make the video speak just as much as the lyrics themselves. Freddie could recognize the music video medium as a canvas upon which he could paint his ideas. With formal training in fine arts, he knew the importance of symbolism and color in both still art and film, and couldn't fathom why the same principles couldn't be applied to his songs.

The lyrics don't just outright tell the story, though. The song says one thing that the video interprets, but both aren't completely in sync. The visuals are up to interpretation just like any work of art. Freddie had two stories to tell here... Not only the story outlined by the words of the song, but also how he felt about those words. And that's where he managed to unite music and video into a wonderful little four-minute movie.

At the center is the main character. Freddie. His entire life is this room in two parts - an opulent staircase that contains all his life's desires. As the scene expands, his court and other revelers dance around him, enjoying life, while the other players - Brian, Roger, and John - stand off to one side in shadow, interacting with no one.

The room itself is interesting. One side is extremely busy, while there is almost nothing on the other side. The balance is striking and obvious; the stairs and everything within - revelers, a throne, gold banisters, lace curtains, balconies and columns, is meant to represent man's desire. This side of the room is warm and comfortable, populated and eye-catching. It could be heaven, or the Garden of Eden or Valhalla. The other side of the room has nothing except shadow, tile, a few stray revelers, and Death and his angels.

And there's Freddie. The commentary on the video does shed some light onto its meaning. A man who appears to have everything is devastated by the lack of love in his life, which would have made him whole. Ultimately, though, the video is about a man who is so crushed by the lack of love that he makes the decision to kill himself.

Red is used carefully but liberally to highlight passion and desire. Interestingly and importantly, red is also the color of blood - remember that for later - although at the beginning, it is very representative of desire. A red "carpet" leads up the stairs, for example, where brightness waits for anyone who enters. Freddie, as the subject of this metaphor, is also wearing red, and is also covered with eyes that are open and forever searching for what he craves. Passion, romance, deep love, and trust. One one arm, this red costume is starting to unravel as he realizes that what he wants is difficult to obtain. He's begun to believe that it's even impossible for him.

And so we reach our second important color. Blue. Often, the lighting abruptly shifts from red to blue, which is a color of sadness and longing, made even more obvious with the use of heavy shadow. It is weighty and unbearable. Crushing. It destroys everything except Freddie, who is alone when the blue light casts shadows upon everything in the room. There is no more red. No more passion. And only one way out.

He tries to make it work. A red, warm glow flashes onto the party again. But he's getting farther away from the party. He's delving into the emptiness.

Brian - as Death - brazenly walks past him on the stairs, but no one seems to notice save for a passing glance. People wearing slight hints of red rush past Freddie, engrossed in each other but ignoring their host.

Freddie is trying to save himself, but as the screen goes blue again, he knows it's over.

Roger - an angel of hell, and John - an angel of heaven, wander into frame behind Freddie. They are also important in this blue landscape of melancholy and loss. "I try and mend the broken pieces/I try to fight back the tears," Freddie says. "They say it's just a state of mind," he goes on to the sound of a discordant guitar sting, as the angels discuss him, perhaps arguing over his soul after the end has come.

This is the point where the video takes a gloriously subtle shift into darkness. It is a scene of cut time - a view of the past where Freddie was long-haired and in his prime, surrounded by the rich, extravagant life that so many people want. Even back then, his expression is devoid of what one would expect from someone with such a bountiful lifestyle, and the real tragedy is that no one seems to notice or care. They ignore his pain, but are suddenly amused and appreciative when he makes a show of himself. And these scenes are intercut with "present" Freddie, framed in blue and heavily shadowed, at his end.

The angels follow Freddie around as if deciding his fate. Though they are dressed as revelers, they always face away from the other people and interact with no one except each other. They go completely unnoticed by everyone, much like Death, although they have an important role to play. They know what's coming and when - they are even the first to climb the stairs as Death makes himself known.

And while the Garden - or Heaven - or Valhalla - is the goal of nearly everyone at this party, Freddie knows he can't find what he's looking for there. He has the ability to get there, but love is constantly eluding him, and he's come to the conclusion that it always will.

And then Death arrives for Freddie, who has finally given up and ended his own life. Suddenly, the red that appears before him isn't passion, but blood and death. Even so, the decision to commit suicide seems to be a cause for celebration - there is dancing, and the pages are throwing rice as if the day of a royal wedding has arrived. Freddie begins to climb the stairs to take a woman by the hand, only to be stung when she steps on his foot and leaves him in pain. It's not what he wanted. It's not what he hoped for.

And then he notices the angels.

The hall is empty, save for them and Freddie, and the looming visage of Death, who leads Freddie out of the Garden and into the empty hall. The angels take their place at the gates, their stare making it absolutely clear that Freddie has been denied any form of afterlife, and that they are in agreement that he will be alone. He can never go back.

But Freddie has no regrets.

"I'll look back on myself and say 'I did it for love,'" he says, as he offers the first and only smile in the entire video.

He did it for love.