#the difficulty in adding a character to an existing ensemble

[shaunashipman]

srsly what kind of crack did tim and lou put in tommy? a grand total of what, 15? 20 minutes? and we're so fucking hooked it's insane

[koi-has-joy]

the secret to being "boring" is to say everything

Voltaire

    Here are a list of words that I know and would like to inform others of!

Tractable - easy to control, obedient

Extrinsic - external, on the outside

Rugged - rough, harsh, bumpy

Yogi - someone that does yoga

Torturous - painful

Orderly - organized, neat

Unique - one of a kind

Receptive - open minded, willing to accept new ideas

Apt - likely, most likely

Nonplussed - confused, unsure, unprepared

Oscillate - rotates, sways back and forth

Throng - a large crowd

Homage - public display of respect

Extricate - escape, remove, free yourself of something

Regress - go back, return to a previous state

Bait - lure, attract, tempt, intisce

Reciprocate - give back, pay back, in return

Idiom - an expression that’s not meant to be taken seriously

Credence - faith, trust, belief, confidence

Kith - friends, acquaintances

Impose - to put in place, force upon

Novelty - something new, original

Taper - to decrease, decline, lessen, reduce, go away

Harangue - long angry speech, rant

Eyesore - unpleasant sight, ugly, unpleasing to the eye

Whim - impulse, sudden desire

Arbiter - somebody that’ll settle a dispute or argument

Legitimate - lawful, legal

Lieu - instead, in place of

Faze - disturb

Archaic - old fashioned, out of style

Bedlam - chaos, commotion

Outlandish - bizarre, unusual, weird

Temerity - courage, gull

Terse - short, brief, to the point, concise

Ornery - mean, grouchy, grumpy

Triskaidekaphobia - fear of the number 13

Modus Operandi - pattern/method of doing something

Egregious - shockingly bad, outstandingly horrible

Denigrate - degrade, criticize, belittle

Gratuitous - unnecessary, unneeded

Iconic - well known, famous, popular

Tact - caution, sympathy, sensitivity, thoughtfulness

Ultimatum - final choice/option/chance

Affront - insult, an offense, a sign of disrespect

Toilsome - involving hard work or labor

Innocuous - not harmful or offensive

Offhand - offensive, carelessly, indifferent

Nepotism - family bias, favoritism

Listless - lifeless, lacking energy or enthusiasm

Insinuate - imply, to suggest, to hint at

Vivacious - full of life, energetic, lively

Indignant - angry

Noisome - stinky

Ostentatious - flashy, extravagant, showy

Neurotic - overly nervous, unstable

Atrocious - terrible, shockingly bad, horrible

Paraphernalia - tools, objects that go along with a particular activity

Recoup - regain, recover

Anomaly - unique, out of the ordinary, unexpected

Yore - a long time ago

Essence - the key element, the basis

Relish - great enjoyment

Stupor - in a daze, state of unawareness, near unconsciousness

Chagrin - disappointment, frustration, annoyance

Hinder - to delay, to obstruct, slow it down

Obviate - prevent, eliminate

Ordeal - challenge, experience of difficulty

Liable - accountable, responsible

Somber - gloomy, grim, serious, sad

Onset - beginning of something, start

Umbrage - offense

Trepidation - fear, nervousness

Discomfit - to make someone uncomfortable

Etymology - the study of words

Meddlesome - nosey

Orientation - the act or process of becoming familiar with something

Nemesis - rival, enemy

Staunch - dedicated, devoted, loyal, reliable

Bonafide - real, actual or genuine

Ire - anger

Loquacious - talkative

Lucid - clearly

Indigenous - native, from originally

Ethic - a set of morals

Jovial - happy, cheerful, friendly, kind

Exacerbate - to worsen

Aspire - to hope for, to dream of

Nullify - numb, cancel out, void

Tout - flaunt, boast

Logistics - plans, steps, arrangements, the process of managing or coordinating

Kismet - fate

Subrosa - secret, hidden

Hone - to sharpen or perfect a skill

Onus - responsibility

Wane - decrease, lessen, decline

Harbor - keep, hold on to 

Obstinate - stubborn

Sycophant - suck up, flatterer

Taut - stretched or pulled tightly

Battery - a long list or series

Lethargic - tired, unmotivated

Unwarranted - unfair, undeserved, unjust

Envoy - message

Status quo - normal, the usual, the way things are

Ubiquitous - everywhere, existing or present everywhere

Extraneous - extra, unnecessary, unrelated

Divisive - separation or hostility

Expound - explain in great detail

Snippet - a small bit of, portion

Histrionic - overly emotional, dramatic

Oraion - formal speech

Ensemble - a group that performs together

Succinct - brief, to the point

Superlative - the best

Tenet - opinion or belief

Acclimate - get used to, adapt

Innate - something you’re born with

Reparation - something you do or pay to make up for something that you’ve done wrong

Watershed - turning point

Ad Nauseam - to the point of annoyance

Yearn - crave, long, desire

Taboo - wrong, forbidden, restricted

Optimal - the best, ideal

Heinous - wicked, evil

Ergo - therefore

Affirmation - approval

Vilify - degrade, criticize, condemn

Edify - change for the better, improve, to instruct

Nexus - center

Magnanimous - generous

Amenable - open, willing, agreeable

Gaggle - noisy group

Inclusive - sharp, clear, direct

Consolidate - combine, unite

Altruism - selfless

Laconic - quick, brief, short, concise

Mesh - connect, work closely together

Yield - produce, grow

Snide - rude, mocking, insulting, sarcastic

Rescind - change, reverse, cancel

Lackadaisical - slow, lazy, unenthusiastic

Seethe - not showing/expressing intense anger

Wince - flinch/cringe in pain

Harmonious - agreeable, peaceful, friendly

Abscond - escape, flee

Trite - unoriginal, overused

Stupendous - extraordinary, astonishing

Evolve - to develop gradually

Repercussions - consequence of a previous action

Absolve - getting rid of guilt/responsibility, flee

Excursion - trip, journey

Negligible - insignificant

Mishap - accident

Sadistic - getting pleasure off of other people's pain, cruel, vicious

Malleable - impressionable, influenceable

Amity - peace, harmony

Existential - pertaining to existence or being

Obsequious - excessively obedient

Loathe - to hate

Solicit - to ask or request

Intricate - complex or detailed

Prodigy - a person or thing with extraordinary traits or abilities

Replete - having plenty, being full of

Delude - to mislead someone into believing something that isn’t true

Homonym - words that sound the same with different meanings

Elusive - hard to catch or pin down

Juxtapose - to put things side by side for comparison

Witless - without intelligence or wisdom, foolish

Zenith - a climatic or highest point

Vehement - very emotional or earnest

Unwieldy - difficult to carry or move due to size, weight or shape

Obligate - to hold someone to accomplishing a task

Transact - to exchange or conduct business with others

Purport - appear or claim to be or do something, especially falsely

Timorous - showing or suffering from nervousness, fear or lack of confidence, timid, without courage

Negate - to deny or cancel

Paltry - small or meager

Petty - of little importance, trivial

Reciprocate - to give in return

Pungent - having a strong smell or taste

Intrepid - confident, fearless

Eschew - to avoid or refrain from using

Divergent - moving progressively away from each other, tending to be different or develop in different directions

Cajole - to persuade through the use of flattery

Tangible - touchable, clear or undeniable

Luminous - glowing or brightly lit

Recuperate - to regain, to restore health or strength

Abnegate - to give up or renounce

Deteriorate - to become worse over time

Maxim - a saying or phrase that expresses a truth or rule

Evanescent - vanishing or fleeting

Usurp - to take wrongful possession

Dominion - sovereignty or control

Tenure - the conditions under which land or buildings are held or occupied

Vicissitude - a change of general situation or circumstances

Undulate - to make wave-like motion, to move like a wave

Prim - formal, proper

Relinquish - to give up or surrender control of something

Sapience - great wisdom or acquired knowledge

Resplendent - shining brightly and pleasantly

Atonement - amends made for a past wrong

Enigma - a mysterious or puzzling thing or person

Fraudulent - deceitful or fake

Reconcilable - capable of being restored to harmony

Iniquity - a weighty wrong or injustice

Jeopardize - to put at risk

Rigmarole - a complex, usually absurd procedure

Salience - the quality of being prominent or standing out

Ameliorate - to male a situation or problem better

Debase - to reduce in value or character

Advocate - to make a case for, to actively support a cause or person

[likos064]

The Reasons Behind the Musings

The following exchange takes place in the comments, but I thought I’d repost it here because it explains a bit about my motivation to post Musings of a Newbie. I would also like to apologise for not responding to the other answers I have received. 

Thank you so much for taking the time to answer my questions. It was really kind of you.

I thought I’d explain a bit more why I chose the questions I did and respond in turn to your answers.

Every question is motivated by a specific complaint that I saw on my dashboard during season 11 of The X-Files. One continuous complaint was how many horrible things have happened to the characters, especially Scully, since the beginning of the show. The reason why I asked about the ensemble cast is because I believe that some of the abuse heaped on the characters is due to the size of the cast. When John Doggett and Monica Reyes joined in seasons 8 and 9, they were tormented quite badly as well. And every time the focus turned on Skinner he had to endure all sorts of torture. However, quite a few were upset when they found out that one episode of season 11, Kitten, would primarily focus on Skinner and his back story. And the addition of the characters Einstein and Miller was mostly met with disdain. 

Furthermore, you pointed out one downside in that the actors became exhausted with the amount of work they had to put in due to the limited cast. It also meant that they couldn’t easily pursue other projects while doing the show, and had to be nearly paranoid about possible injuries or illness. Some of it was mitigated with the use of cell-phones in season 2, as David revealed while they did press for season 10 - both didn’t always have to be available at the same time. However, some storylines were directly motivated by the actor’s availability e.g. Scully’s original abduction being due to Gillian’s pregnancy and the delivery of Piper, Mulder becoming an absentee father due to David leaving the show, and Scully staying behind with William, despite the the clear threat against the child, due to Gillian’s contract for season 9.

2nd R: A pattern that shows up continuously on my dashboard is that when the show doesn’t provide what people want - mostly lack of confirmed romance, no kissing etc., or the storyline goes in a direction that is less than desired e.g. continuous storylines centered around Scully’s fertility and reproduction, they will attribute it to the lack of female input. Therefore, I was curious as to what that would mean in practice. The current commentary is too abstract for me to understand what is meant. However, I do agree that a more diverse and inclusive writing and directing pool would lead to a more welcoming working environment, and The X-Files certainly worked as a springboard for a lot of careers e.g. Alex Gansa & Howard Gordon - Homeland, Frank Spotnitz - The Man in the High Castle, Vince Gilligan - Breaking Bad, and Better Call Saul. 

3rd R: I will have to disagree with you when it comes to FOX being willing to end the show if Chris Carter wanted to. As I mentioned before, there was a plan for a movie franchise, even if it did not come to pass, after season 5. There were also attempts to end everything in season 7 e.g. closing up the storyline with Samantha, getting rid of the Cigarette Smoking Man, and season 8 e.g. forcing Mulder permanently, at the time, off the X-Files, tying his storyline and motivation to William and giving Mulder and Scully one perfect moment of happiness in Existence, which is probably the least cliffhangery season ending we’ve received. FOX ordered one more season, as the numbers went up again following David’s return, when Mulder came back from his abduction. David’s contract had already ended and he was not willing to extend it, while Gillian signed up for both season 8 and 9 at the same time to achieve parity in pay. Chris Carter was set to leave, however, he stayed for Gillian, whom FOX demanded complete her contract. At the moment FOX has still not said whether there will be one more season or not, though I suppose after their acquisition that is now up to Disney. Thereby not saying that Chris Carter doesn’t have a monetary gain in continuing, however, as far as I can tell it has never been solely up to him as to whether there will be more or not. At a Paley conference in conjunction with the second movie, I Want to Believe, he explained the difficulty in planning when you never know who will be available to you in terms of writers, directors, and actors. Furthermore, they never knew if they were going to get another season.

Last R: While I agree that there was lack of women involved in the show there are still quite a few that could have commented. True, there were only two female directors during the original run, one in season 7 and one in Season 9 Episode 7 John Doe, as you already mentioned, and at that time David wasn’t around in any official capacity. However, the reason I used Joel McHale and Robert Patrick as my examples was because they spent a comparatively short time on the show. Robert Patrick got added in Season 8 and made 40 episodes, with his last being Season 9 Episode 19-20 The Truth. Annabeth Gish as Monica Reyes appears in Season 8 Episode 14 This Is Not Happening, and appeared in 26 episodes during seasons 8 and 9. She would have had a couple of episodes with both of them together, and she was there for both Season 9 Episode 16 William and Season 9 Episode 19-20 The Truth, when David was on set as he directed the former and came up with the original story together with Frank Spotnitz and Chris Carter. She was also there for season 10 and 11. Joel McHale only had two episodes in season 10 My Struggle I and My Struggle II, and one in season 11 My Struggle IV and he still commented on it. Martin Landau was only in The X-Files: Fight the Future and had only scenes with David and still compared them to Spencer Tracy and Kathrine Hepburn. 

Furthermore, there were a few recurring female characters. Sheila Larken as Margaret Scully joined in Season 1 Episode 13 Beyond the Sea and has a total of 17 episodes through seasons 1-5 and 8-10. She is also married to R.W. Goodwin who worked on the X-Files during its Vancouver years as a co-executive producer, executive producer, director and writer. Melinda McGraw as Melissa Scully joined in Season 2 Episode 8 One Breath for a total of 4 episodes, her last appearance being in Season 5 Episode 6 Christmas Carol, though David was absent as he was promoting Playing God with Angelina Jolie. One might even count Megan Leitch, the actress who portrayed Samantha Mulder as an adult. Her first appearance was in Season 2 Episode 16 Colony, and her last Season 7 Episode 2 The Sixth Extinction II: Amor Fait making it four episodes in total. Admittedly she had hardly any scenes with Gillian, but she was in episodes where they both appeared. Or even Rebecca Toolan as Teena Mulder, who also first appeared in Season 2 Episode 16 Colony, and came back in episodes through seasons 2-4 and 7 with Season 7 Episode 11 Closure being her last episode, bringing her up to ten episodes. 

Laurie Holden as Marita Covarrubias was introduced in Season 4 Episode 1 Herrenvolk and became fairly recurring during season 4 and then appeared more sporadically during seasons 5-7, her final appearance was in Season 9 Episode 19-20 The Truth for a total of ten episodes. Veronica Cartwright as Cassandra Spender appeared in Season 5 Episode 13 Patient X to Season 6 Episode 12 One Son making it four episodes. Mimi Rogers as Diana Fowley joined the cast in Season 5 Episode 20 The End and came back for a few episodes during season 6-7 until her final appearance in Season 7 Episode 2 The Sixth Extinction II: Amor Fati totalling 7 episodes.

There were also a number of female writers. The first being Marilyn Osborn who wrote Season 1 Episode 19 Shapes, followed by Sara B. Cooper as Sara B. Charno who wrote the episodes Season 2 Episode 12 Aubrey and Season 2 Episode 21 The Calusari. Kim Newton wrote Season 3 Episode 11 Revelations and Season 3 Episode 22 Quagmire, the latter with some assistance from Darin Morgan e.g. conversation on the rock. Valerie Mayhew and Vivian Mayhew wrote Season 4 Episode 6 Sanguinarium, Jessica Scott wrote Season 5 Episode 9 Schizogeny, and Dr. Margaret Fearon who wrote the story for Season 10 Episode 6 My Struggle II together with Anne Simon, the latter who worked as the science advisor in 1998 as well as during the revival. 

Kristen Cloke wrote Season 11 Episode 7 Rm9sbG93ZXJz together with Shannon Hamblin as well as worked as an actress as  Melissa Rydell Ephesian in Season 4 Episode 5 The Field Where I Died and she is married to Glen Morgan who was a writer for season 1, 2 and 4 and came back for season 10 and 11 to both write and direct. Karen Nielsen was a script coordinator for season 10 and 11 and wrote Season 11 Episode 9 Nothing Lasts Forever, and she is the one who rather gleefully announced that the whispering between Scully and Mulder was between Gillian and David and would not be revealed.

In season 11 both Carol Banker and Holly Dale directed, episode 6 Kitten and episode 8 Familiar respectively, even if Carol Banker’s episode mostly focused on Skinner. But she was also a script supervisor from season 6 to season 9, and an actress as Carol in Season 7 Episode 17 all things, which admittedly once again had less of David.

One of the reasons that I find it so fascinating is that the shipping fandom, those compelled by David and Gillian’s chemistry to pair up Mulder and Scully is mostly comprised of women. But when it comes to the show, the men seem far more impressed. Almost enamoured, or maybe its envy. Maybe they wished that they had that kind of connection with someone. Maybe we all do.

[bookwyrmshoard]

Star Trek Discovery — Episode 1 and 2 review

I watched the first 2 episodes of Star Trek: Discovery last night, with mixed feelings. I loved the main character, loved Michelle Yeoh’s character, really disliked a species redesign, and was taken aback by how short the episodes are (and how frequent the ads are.) But as a diehard Star Trek fan, I plan to keep watching; we subscribed to CBS All Access just for this show.

Spoiler alert: If you haven’t seen the show yet, there is at least one spoiler below, specifically in discussing the species redesign I mentioned above. I tried not to give away any major plot points. The inclusion of this species was discussed in any number of places before the show aired. But if you haven’t been paying attention to the pre-launch buzz, the mere mention of the species in question could suggest what happens in the first two episodes. I can’t avoid discussing it in my review, because it comprises a significant part of my reaction to the show so far.

Proceed at your own risk.

Sonequa Martin-Green is supurb as Michael Burnham, a human raised on Vulcan, who is First Officer on the Shenzou as the series opens. As a child, Michael survived a Klingon terror attack, and became a ward of Sarek (Spock’s father), receiving a Vulcan education and attending the Vulcan Science Academy—the first human to do so. I hope her relationship with Sarek, seen thus far mainly through flashbacks, will be explored further. That backstory makes her a really interesting character, one who, like Spock, embodies the internal conflict between emotion and reason. I’m really looking forward to seeing the character developed further, but she’s already an appealingly complex, conflicted, three-dimensional person from the moment she appears onscreen, thanks to a stellar performance by Martin-Green that is unquestionably the highlight of the show so far. Her Burnham is intensely focused, fiercely curious, and highly intelligent; she uses logic as a tool, but her emotions are visible under the cool exterior.

Michelle Yeoh is also terrific in the first two episodes. She’s listed as a guest star, not a regular, which is a pity, as I really like her character, a soldier/diplomat who captains the Shenzhou. Yeoh’s Captain Georgiou is confident in command, her authority and coolheaded competence as clear in her facial and body language as her integrity and wry sense of humor. There’s obviously a deep affection between Georgiou and her protege and first officer, but it is tested in these two episodes.

The writing so far varies between “all right” and “very good.” I enjoyed the dialogue between Michael and Commander Georgiou, but was less impressed with the Klingons’ dialogue (more on that below.) The storyline held my attention throughout, with good pacing and plenty of tension, both within and between the characters, and in terms of events. Pre-show press indicates that the series will be much less episodic than previous series have been; the main story arc will play out over the 15 episodes of Season 1, essentially as a serial. It’s also less of an ensemble show than previous Trek series, at least so far; the focus is clearly on Michael Burnham.

Based on the first two episodes, it appears that the show is going more in the direction of moral ambivalence and intercrew conflict, like the later seasons of Deep Space 9 (DS9) and much of Voyager,  than the optimism and moral certitude that characterize most of the original series (TOS) and Star Trek: Next Generation (STNG.) Showrunner Aaron Harberts described Star Trek: Discovery as “dystopian” on the After Trek show that aired following the first episode. That doesn’t surprise me, particularly in light of the current sociopolitical climate both nationally and internationally. Still, I hope that the show will retain at least some of the optimism of Roddenberry’s original vision, which is in short supply in the real world these days. I think we need the reminder that a world which embraces diversity is not only desirable but possible, when people—and peoples—deal with one another with respect. From an interview Martin-Green gave, it seems that the show does express something of that vision as well as the difficulty of reaching it:

“Discovery,” she says, is about “war, the greatest conflict of all, but it’s also about  profound questions of ‘Who am I,’ ‘who are you,’ ‘how do I relate to you?’  How do we live with each other? How do we make acculturation a two-way exchange rather than me dominating you or you dominating me?”

In “Discovery,” she says “we are aspiring to a utopia, but we haven’t reached perfection yet. Yet we are trying [but] you are going to see us try and fail and try again and fail again.”   (source: Newsday)

The show’s visual effects are as good as we have come to expect from science fiction shows and movies, which is to say very good to excellent. The directors and cinematographers have clearly borrowed from the J.J. Abrams playbook when it comes to camera angles and lens flares. (Thanks to my husband for that observation, and put it in the “ok” category from my perspective, as it’s not necessarily a style I embrace.) They’ve also made an interesting and potentially controversial choice for the opening credits, eschewing the usual Star Trek space shots and replacing them with a CGI sequence that is far more about design than the wonders of space. The opening credits music includes brief nods to the original score, which is a nice touch. However, overall the opening credits lack the excitement of the corresponding sequences of TOS, STNG, and DS9.

CBS All Access is a two-tier streaming channel, with ads at the lower rate. The episode length and structure have clearly been tailored to accommodate the ads… and there are a lot of them. If I had to guess (I didn’t time it precisely), there’s about 37 to 40 minutes of actual show, including the credits, versus about 20 minutes of ads. That’s noticeably less showtime than those of us who grew up watching TOS or STNG or DS9 expect from a Star Trek show, and I was a little taken aback by how short the episodes felt.

My biggest hesitation about the show so far is the physical redesign of the Klingons, which is… well, I really don’t care for it. They’ve added so many facial prosthetics that the actors’ expressions are largely masked. (They’ve also made the Klingons bald.) It’s poor design from the acting standpoint. More to the point, it was totally unnecessary.

In 1987, Star Trek fans were taken aback by the craniofacial redesign of Klingons that occurred with the launch of STNG, but they accepted it fairly quickly. That appearance remained fairly constant throughout the four shows (STNG, DS9, Voyager, and Enterprise) and movies made during the same years. It is now not only widely accepted but canon, with hundreds of hours of footage behind it. I think a lot of fans are going to be dismayed this arbitrary reimagining of Klingon physiognomy, particularly since it diminishes the characters’ emotional affect (or at least the actors’ ability to portray their emotions.) It remains to be seen whether longterm fans will accept the new design.

Klingon speech has lost some of its expressiveness as well. The lead Klingon, T’Kuvma, sounds like he’s having difficulty enunciating clearly due to poorly-fitting false teeth (and perhaps he is—see my comment on prosthetics, above.) Furthermore, the Klingons speak exclusively in Klingon (with subtitles) when speaking among themselves. This could totally work if it were handled well, but I didn’t feel it was. The Klingons, particularly T’Kuvma, sound stilted to me, speaking in gutteral barks with less emotional range than I expect: it sounds more like rote memorization than the fluency of a native tongue. I’ll grant you that there is a decided harshness and gutteral quality to canon Klingon speech, with words often delivered like blows, but previous shows made it seem more organic, more a part of the speech pattern. Perhaps fluency and expressiveness will come as the actors grow more accustomed to speaking Klingon.

The Wikipedia article on the show has this to say about the redesign: “The show also heavily features the Klingon species, with the intent of exploring the central conflict from both perspectives. The Klingons were redesigned for the series, with influence from their previous appearances, the original inspirations for the species, and the novel The Final Reflection, as well as research on biology and evolution.”  I don’t see any inspiration from TOS in the new Klingon craniofacial structure, but the current look is at least somewhat influenced by the head ridges of the STNG/DS9-era Klingons. Sets and weapon design show more influence: the designers appear to have drawn heavily on “existing” Klingon weapons and interior design, but put their own stamp on them. I actually thought the Klingon sets and weapons looked interesting and Klingon-like. It’s the characters’ physical appearance and (so far) limited emotional range that I’m unhappy with.  Despite what I’ve read about why the showrunners and designers chose the new look (Wikipedia; scroll down to “Klingons”), I still think there was no need to redesign Klingon physiology in order to deal with this period in Starfleet history, when the redesign departs significantly from canon, and  detracts from the actors’ ability to bring the richness of individuality and expression to the characters.

But I look forward to seeing how the show “[explores] the central conflict from both perspectives.” I hope that in doing so, the will explore the Klingon culture beyond its glorification of violence and warfare, for although that is certainly part of the Klingon ethos, it is not the whole of it by any means. And I hope that in the show’s depictions of the 24 Klingon houses, which (according to various sources) espouse differing ideologies and to some extent hail from different cultures, they will connect with and build upon the Klingon culture(s) we’ve already seen in STNG and DS9 in particular.

There is more than enough good material in Star Trek: Discovery to outweigh my dismay over a single aspect and keep me watching for now. Honestly, Martin-Green’s portrayal of Michael Burnham would be enough all on its own. The show’s writing and visuals are also strong enough to hold my interest. And I’m really looking forward to seeing Jason Isaacs (Lucius Malfoy) as a Starfleet captain in future episodes, and to seeing the Discovery crew in all its promised diversity and complex relationships. I just wish the Klingons, as they have appeared so far, didn’t leave me feeling a bit betrayed as a fan. And I wish the episodes were about 10 minutes longer.

I’m willing to give it time. After all, STNG took several seasons to really hit its stride, when it relaunched the franchise back in 1987.  I hope my fellow fans—and CBS—are also willing to to be patient. Discovery has made a good start on the whole. If they can keep it up and build on the Star Trek legacy in ways that stay true to the original vision, I’ll be a very happy fan.

Rating (so far): 3.75 stars out of 5.

Review mirrored from The Bookwyrm’s Hoard blog.

[stringnarratives]

Phantoms of an Opera: “Prey”

[This post brought to you with major spoilers for Bethesda’s 2017 game “Prey.” It does not contain spoilers for the video game by the same name from which this one was rebooted or Michael Crichton’s 2002 book “Prey.” ]

On its most explicit level, “Prey” is about Morgan Yu, a new employee of space-based neurological research corporation TranStar-- a venture in which Morgan’s whole family is monetarily and professionally invested and their brother is the research head. However, seemingly only a few days into a research voyage into space, the alien species-- called Typhon-- that TranStar has used to create neurological injections revolt against the crew of the Talos I vessel, propelling Morgan into a life-or-death conflict against the creatures, the malfunctioning technology aboard the ship and humans that have been corrupted (physically and/or emotionally) by the Typhon. It becomes clear as the narrative progresses, however, that the situation is much more complicated than a simple laboratory leak, and Morgan must make choices that significantly affect the livelihoods of the crew members left alive aboard Talos I. 

By its own terms, the game is an often-creepy, first-person-shooter, sci-fi action adventure set aboard an Art Deco space ship in an alternate universe. However, all of those descriptors aside, one of “Prey”’s most unique traits exists on a level slightly removed from the alien-blasting escapades of Morgan Yu. 

According to the game’s official guide, there are 267 persons other than Morgan aboard Talos I at the story’s start-- crew members, guests and volunteers who have made the vessel their home. Evidence of their existence is scattered throughout the game in the form of emails, Typhon-controlled corpses (called phantoms, for their humanoid form and apparently fragmented memories of their previous lives), abandoned belongings and “Bioshock”-esque audio diaries. Finding these informational items is an optional part of Morgan’s ultimate quest-- many are stumbled upon over the course of completing other tasks-- but, when collected properly and strung together, they build a narrative that is closer to a ghost story than a horror game, and much closer to a space opera than sci-fi action.

As revealed in these left-behind messages, in the days preceding the Typhon revolt, the crew of Talos I went about their days as usual, performing normal duties to keep the ship running and research progressing as needed. Ship-wide automated reminders to regularly check in with a mental health expert remind us that many were experiencing mental discord as a side affect of working with the Typhon, as well as normal emotional difficulties that might come with working in an isolated environment. Snacks and coffee are squirreled away in desks and lab cabinets. Spare parts and day-to-day technology still litter workstations. When the laboratory breach begins “Prey,” these routine activities were cut short as specialists rushed to their posts or defended positions, leaving behind messy spreads of belongings, from elaborately planned workplace pranks to popular novels left on bedside tables. 

The items and messages paint a picture of a voyage that was more or less going well. Although the crew members are primarily background to Morgan, most of them carry their own small plot arcs as well. Some have gripes with management that work towards or away from resolution. A few have on-board romances going on. Others are seeking ways to stay entertained in the contained quarters of Talos I. 

Taken alone, they could be the abstracts for episodes of a long-running sci-fi show about the employees of a semi-sketchy corporate research machine with an ensemble cast in the vein of “Star Trek.” Each episode would follow a single crew member in the minor personal and workplace dramas that led up to the emergency and probably run on a motif that some aspects of life never change, even if life is set in space 15 years in the future.

In the game, however, they don’t stand alone, but rather provide a colorful background against which “Prey” takes place, adding a sense of motivation to the player’s actions. Although the player has the opportunity to let the encountered background characters die (or kill the characters themself, which can even earn the “I and It” achievement in the game), encounters with the small bits of mundane drama scattered throughout the ship are meant to inspire empathy and a level of heroism-- a major theme that becomes more prevalent as “Prey” progresses. Knowing the backstories of those who remain alive or under alien control on the ship after the attack gives the player an argument for being more thoughtful about gameplay as a whole.  

Perhaps one of the most affecting stories noted in my playthrough was the relationship between chief archivist Danielle Sho and sanitation boss Abigail Foy. Through emails and audio recordings, the player can trace the pair’s budding relationship-- their shared days off, nights playing board games with friends, even arguments over some of the daily events aboard Talos I. However, after an encounter with the very much alive Danielle Sho, it’s revealed that the pair was separated after the major events leading up to the game, and Foy’s body is found not much later, one victim of a non-corrupted human enemy aboard the ship. Sho then requests that the player avenge her loss-- and later will judge them on whether or not they defeated the traitor.

Because while “Prey” is, at its surface, a story about the effects of humanity’s tendency to go to any lengths for progress and profit, it is also-- at its heart-- a story about the things that make us human. As much as it is about the disaster that has befallen Talos I, it’s also about the people who were there when it happened. And although we don’t encounter them all face-to-face over the course of the adventure, its their ghosts wandering the halls, telling subtle secrets that make the game all the deeper.

[strechanadi]

Paris Opéra ballet Swan lake - when it’s not about Odette

So I assume you were all too shy to ask, but you actually desperately want to read my review on POB Swan lake, right?

So ... Here it is!

(And as always - I’m sorry for that English grammar I murdered once again. I truly am.)

(Yes, they pay me for this.)

Paris Opéra ballet Swan lake - when it’s not about Odette

It’s December. And for almost every ballet company in the world it means annual Nutcracker madness. Not for Paris Opera. French most prestigious scene chooses for every christmas season another big classic and this year it was time of the most iconic piece - Swan lake, returning on stage of Opéra Bastille after just year and a half, and being broadcast live on December 8th in various cinemas in France, Germany, Austria or Belgium. Czech spectators could watch the record in local cinemas on 17/12 and 18/12.

Big classics in ballet world mean ballets by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov. And for Paris Opera pieces by these two masters mean choreographies by Rudolf Nureyev, who was also director of the company between 1983 - 1989. He made his first version of Swan lake in 1964 for Viena Staatsballet, where he danced the premiere himself with Margot Fonteyn and after the performace they recieved record 89 curtain calls. Paris version was born 20 years later in 1984 and its psychological aspect follows Swan lakes by John Cranko (1967) or John Neumeier (1976).

Distinctive storytelling

Nureyev was not just extraordinary and non conventional dancer, he was equally exceptional as choreographer and storyteller. He brought the prince into focus and made him true main character of the ballet. He added two solo variations for him in Act 1 (first on music of pas d’action, the second, slow one on andante sostenuto, which is in the original Tchaikovsky score situated right before Pas de trois, and which has been commonly cut out) and also returned his variation into Act 2 (right after Big swans pas de quatre). But more importantly he intensified prince’s character.

Siegfried in Nureyev’s concept is not an ordinary dreamer, his absent-mindeness and daydreaming are significant, almost symptomatic for him. The real world with its obligations, responsibilities and conventions, he could learn but never truly understand, is unfriendly place for a young man like him - in short Nureyev made his prince suffer with one of the autistic spectrum disorder.

Such prince needs tutor or mentor more than ever to help him better understand the complexity of court’s life. The tutor is Wolfgang, mysterious, enigmatic man, whose relationship with Siegfried is strange, a bit unclear, but unquestionably strong with as many interpretations of it as casts. Second act gives another perspective on said character, changing Wolfgang into Rothbart, magical creature who has unlimited power over Odette. Considering prince’s personality, the idea of all swans’ acts taking place solely in Siegfried’s fantasies and dreams basically suggest itself (as even Nureyev indicates). The white swan then represents not only the idea of pure love, but she is also reflecting prince alone, for her existence depends on Rothbart just as Siegfried’s depends on Wolfgang.

Act 3 is the most ambiguous. Reality with Siegfried on his own engagement party blends in with prince’s own inner world, where he is trying to hide, and where’s Odile - embodiment of sensuality and attraction (so she’s more like an addition to romantic Odette than her opposite). However even in his own dreams Siegfried is not left alone with object of his desires. The famous so called black pas de deux becomes a masterly pas de trois thanks to constantly present Rothbart.

There are two decisive moments in last Act. The first one is Odette and Siegfried’s duet (music for pas de six formerly from Act 3) with lots of synchronal dance passages and repeated steps, that are danced by both dancers who are constantly changing their place in pair (sorry, this sounds really stupid, but this is what I was talking about and couldn’t translate to English…), so Odette and Siegfried are blending in with each other even more. And then there is final Siegfried’s confrontation with Rothbart, that is referring to Siegfried’s duet with Wolfgang from the end of Act 1. At the very end they even literally repeat some parts of it, which could be an explanation and answer to some of spectators’ questions or on the contrary it could provoke new speculations on the true nature of Wolfgang/Rothbart and his relationship with Siegfried.

The dreamy, kind of blurred atmosphere is supported by faded pastel or light earthy colour costumes (Franca Squarciapino) and very minimalistic, yet expressive decors and stage design (Ezio Frigerio), that mainly in Act 1 complete the picture of stern, hostile world in which Siegfried feels like a prisoner.

Artistic approaches

From what was written is clear, that this Swan lake depends even more than any other on its interprets.

One of the most emblematic princes of Paris Opera is Mathieu Ganio, étoile of the company. And watching him on stage you fully understand why. If there should be just two words describing his performance, it would be honesty and genuineness, because the way he more lives than acts his part is simply disarming. He portrays his prince with remarkable nuances. He is able to act as an aristocrat, to play his part in social interactions, if it’s needed. But then there are moments he could be his true self (and it is not just by coincidence there is always Wolfgang with him) and his immense fragility, mental confusion and insecurity are evident. His ineffable tenderness and open fascination with white swan is almost touching and makes sharp contrast to his confidence and dominance in Act 3 where he would like and tries to catch up with Odile, who arouses his desires, but by her constant escaping and refusing him, also provokes his resentment and anger, very unique emotions in Siegfried’s character. The end of Act 3, while he’s trying to deal with the discovered truth about Odile, almost matches Giselle’s mad scene from the first act of said ballet in its unaffected harshness. Speaking of his dancing - Ganio could demonstrate his unquestionable talent for dreamy adagio variations full of emotions, his refined arabesques as well as soft and at the same time French precise pas de chats  and especially his extraordinary sense of music and Nureyev’s choreography. His Siegfried’s variation from the end of Act 1 is one one of the most poetic moments not just of this particular Swan lake.

The dual role of Odette and Odile was danced by étoile Amandnine Albisson. There are some truly remarkable musical moments in her dancing, she intuitively follows all rythmical accents and reacts on any change of music. However, she’s no exceptional interpret otherwise, besides her artistic and acting choices aren’t always compatibile with Ganio. As an untouchable, unattainable Odette she maybe seems too reserved, too distant, but her lack of swan like arms and pliant, flexible back required are the biggest issues. Her Odile then is more winsome, enchanting than demonic and disdainful, however although the role of femme fatale suits Albisson better, there’s still some kind of spark and individuality lacking.

The real main couple

While Albisson/Ganio couple is not completely flawless, missing its magic and better chemistry between the two of them, the couple Ganio’s Siegfried makes with François Alu’s Wolfgang strongly stands out. Their relationship makes you shivers sometimes, but it’s their remarkable duets, full of meaningful gestures and looks, that can break your heart (wait a minute - this is something I wanted to delete before sending to editors! Well… shit.), that are the most intense. They are full of contrasts. Where Ganio is elegant and melancholic, Alu is energetic and forceful. While Ganio’s Siegfried is embodiment of artlessly innocent devotion and pure, almost childlike, naive gullibility, Alu’s Wolfgang is uncompromisingly dominant, darkly authoritative and very well aware of his power over young prince. And he doesn’t hesitate and just brazenly taking advantage of it. Francois Alu makes his Wolfgang not very layered character, even as prince’s tutor, he’s more like Rothbart, flamboyant villain, who hides his intentions behind fake joviality, that Siegfried is almost unable to expose. His mockery and self-satisfaction visible in his eyes every time prince looks at him with explicitly sincere devoutness, is completed by powerful dancing, that literally explodes in Rothbart’s variation in Act 3. But maybe he could slightly slow down and concentrate more on the duality of his character. Or characters?

The famous Act 1 Pas de trois was danced by three talented first soloist Leonore Baulac, Hannah O���Neill and Germain Louvet (AN Louvet and Baulac were named étoiles on 28th and 31st of December after their performance as Siegfried and Odette/Odile). Valentine Colasante and Arthus Raveau caught viewers’ attention in Act 3 as one of the two pairs in Spanish dance.

Endless inventiveness

Nureyev choreographies use the traditional classical steps, but are famous for its distinctive style and difficulty not for the soloists only, but for the whole ensemble. The corps de ballet is the fourth main role in this Swan lake. Act 1 is prove of Nureyev’s genius in corps de ballet dances and is crowned by masterly, all men polonaise (Dance with cups traditionally). In Act 2 he sticks with iconic Ivanov’s choreography (or with what we use to think is Ivanov’s choreography), but even here he is able to find his own way how to play with it. Dances of swans are full of nuances, full of different details, any two succesive steps are not completely the same, there’s always at least slight change in port de bras, in tilt of head, in the direction of look, and that makes the whole picture even more textured and vivid. In Act 4 he left typical swan port de bras behind and the dancers, moving across the stage in canon, are giving impression not so much of birds but more of slowly growing waves of heavy seas.  

People are use to watch Swan lakes because of the swan dual role and mainly the ballerinas dancing them. In case of Nureyev’s version, you should be interested in interprets of main male roles. Because they are the ones who truly matters. Don’t let yourself be confused by Odette/Odile on top of casting list.

[cactusnotes]

Omissions in Othello - Act 4 Scene 3

I do think it is their husbands' faults If wives do fall: say that they slack their duties, And pour our treasures into foreign laps, Or else break out in peevish jealousies, Throwing restraint upon us; or say they strike us, Or scant our former having in despite; Why, we have galls, and though we have some grace, Yet have we some revenge. 

Let husbands know Their wives have sense like them: they see and smell And have their palates both for sweet and sour, As husbands have. What is it that they do When they change us for others? Is it sport? I think it is: and doth affection breed it? I think it doth: is't frailty that thus errs? It is so too: and have not we affections, Desires for sport, and frailty, as men have? Then let them use us well: else let them know, The ills we do, their ills instruct us so. - Emilia, Act 4 Scene 3

Emilia’s response to Desdemona’s disbelief of women who would cheat on their husbands is perhaps one of the most striking examples of feminist ideology, long before the movement had even started. For once, the blame is put on the men, and the injustice suffered by Shakespearean women--and women today too--is brought to light. 

Certainly from today's perspective, the speech is one of the most important in the play--so it came as a total shock to me personally, and likely many others, when I realised that this speech is entirely cut out of the First Quarto turning twenty lines of powerful criticism of men’s behaviour  to two lines essentially translating to ‘yes, there are many women who cheat’. 

The First Quarto was published in 1522, approximately 20 years after the play was first performed, and is the first printed and copyrighted version of the play, available to the public. There was a series of First Quartos for many of Shakespeare’s plays, all shorter compared to the later publications of the play, such as the Folio and Second Quarto (the Folio being the next version to be published, containing 160 more lines than the Quarto, while the Quarto contains very few lines not found in the Folio). 

It has been recognised that the lines omitted fit broad themes explored in the play: race and gender, and more specifically, how these themes link with sexuality. Issues concerning race are the passages cut out more frequently, so have been the focus of many modern explorations of the two early editions, however I shall focus on the removed passages in Act 4 scene 3. 

In terms of what is omitted from this scene: Desdemona’s singing about Willows, Emilia joking about “a lady in Venice would have walked barefoot to Palestine for a touch of [Lodovico’s] nether lip”, Desdemona first asking of there are “women do abuse their husbands” and, as mentioned before, Emilia’s defence of women. 

In terms of the attitude of the omission of such scenes: Alice Walker said the first Quarto was a corrupt and vulgarising pervasion of Shakespeare’s intentions of the play. Depending on interpretation, one could argue that one of Shakespeare’s aims was to point out the hypocrisy of social stereotypes for women, which is literally deprived in this passage. 

There are several explanations for why things are cut. One of which is that the Quartos represent an actual edition used to perform a play, which would have had a time limit, so some sections have to be cut. This is likely the reason why the song was cut: Desdemona would have been played by a young boy, who may have had vocal difficulties for the role. The Quarto edition itself had a limit of size, so some parts had to be cut as ‘dead wood’, meaning it was unimportant to the plot, and perhaps a distraction from the actual plot. A final explanation is that they were actually added in later, perhaps by Shakespeare, perhaps by some ghost writer, to develop an idea or character. 

Was Emilia’s speech cut due to it being performed live? The Quarto has more stage directions, indicating it was more likely played live, and also contains less brutish language, which could suggest that play was ‘softened’ to be more palatable to the visiting Spanish ensemble. Specifically relating to the speech, the time coincided with the ‘Acts to Restraine Abuses of Players’, where many of Shakespeare’s plays were edited to ensure the words weren’t too distressing to the men who said them, meaning the speech could have been cut because it was literally against the law, because it was too traumatising for actors to say that women are equal to men. 

This highlights how radical and forward-thinking Shakespeare’s ideas actually were: they could have been banned. Several murders and a lot of fighting are perfectly fine, but women having ‘appetites’ and desires was not. That’s how different their mindset was to ours, and the revolutionary nature of Shakespeare’s words can hardly be undermined if the passage was against the law. However, the passage may not have been removed for being against the law, since the act was introduced in 1606, with the play first being performed in 1604, though the passage could have been removed for the same reasons, so the point still stands: it’s simply too advanced for the actors and audience to handle.

The second reason, as suggested by M. R. Ridley is that it was ‘deadwood’, and cut out because it wasn’t seen as necessary to the plot. However, I do not think this is the case, as it is undoubtedly an important part of Emilia’s character, despite it not being inherently important to the plot. Emilia begins as the typical, subservient wife, taking Despemona’s handkerchief due to Iago's orders, and lying about it. However, at the end of the play, she dies in defence of Desdemona, after asserting that she won't go home with her husband. This leap of character would seem almost unrealistic without this scene, where we learn that she is a free thinking individual, who has limits which Iago crosses, and also a strong friendship with Desdemona leading to such a passionate reaction to Desdemona’s death. The scene both makes the women realistic and tragic, and is definitely more important than the comic relief scenes of the clown, which are not cut from the Quarto. 

If indeed the speech was cut from the play for being unimportant, it still implies that editors at the time viewed the development of female characters so they actually have depth as less important than comic relief, highlighting what value they gave to women: very little. Another impact and implication is seen in their deaths, as without scenes such as Act 4 scene 3, which lessens the tragedy, and instead makes it more focused on men. Desdemona’s death becomes upsetting solely as it was the result of Othello’s jealousy, rather than because it is not only that, but the loss of an innocent girl who liked to sing, and was still learning about the world. Emilia’s death becomes the angry murder of a disobedient wife, rather than the death of a free-thinking, witty, brilliant friend. It reduces women to be just ‘wives’ and ‘victims’ than actual individuals, each unique and different, and it deprives the audience of the pathos of their deaths. 

In the end, this scene is not ‘deadwood’, not to Shakespeare (for else he wouldn’t write it), not to any modern audience (rather, the ‘wood’ is ablaze with light and interest), and can only be considered to unimportant to an editor with the idea that women have limited importance, the very idea Shakespeare seems to be protesting against, and once more, it demonstrates how revolutionary and new Shakespeare’s ideas would have been. 

The final explanation for the emission is that it was added in later. This is unlikely, in that both the Quarto and Folio was published after Shakespeare’s death, yet the Folio undoubtedly shows some ‘polishing’ and corrections, suggesting this is somehow a possibility. Shakespeare adding in such moving and important passages could only really be put down to some kind of change in author: either an introduction to some early feminist ideas, or becoming more passionate about some pre-existing ideas, either way, the development of characters in the play would indicate a development of the author outside of the play. 

There is the rather disappointing possibility that the speech is an addition by some other author, however the style of writing in terms of complexity and word play is on a similar level, so this is unlikely. Furthermore, the speech doesn’t seem inconsistent regarding Emilia’s character (some may argue that Emilia’s treatment of Bianca suggests it is actually inconsistent, but it is important to remember that Emilia explicitly says “I would not do such a thing for a joint-ring...nor any petty exhibition”, which is technically what Bianca’s job is, so it isn’t hypocritical of Emilia) so the fact that Shakespeare created the base of a character who could give such a modern and interesting speech is an achievement in itself. 

To sum up, the omission of multiple parts of Act 4 Scene 3, which focuses on developing female characters, especially Emilia, who reveals some atypical beliefs about women being equal to men, could have several different reasons, with different implications. Perhaps they were added later by Shakespeare, implying he went through some change to end up with such radical beliefs. It could be that they were removed as being ‘deadwood’, which stresses the indifference of society to well developed, individual women, highlighting how unusual Shakespeare’s ideas are. 

However the most likely reason is that it was removed as the manuscript the quarto is derived from was written specifically for a performance. This would imply that the speech was too difficult for the actors to take in, to the point where it was actually illegal for them to have to say them, demonstrating how new and unusual the ideas of equality was for the Shakespearean people. Either way, one thing’s for sure: it seems Shakespeare goes up in estimation to a modern audience as, through Emilia, he captured and portrayed the injustice faced by women which, in the end, could not be silenced.

[ggdbonlineshop-blog]

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[its-just-like-the-movies]

Personal Ballot for 2017: Score, Costume Design, Production Design, Visual Effects, and Makeup

Hi all! I’ve begun the slow but steady process of writing out paragraph-long entires for my favorites of 2017 in 20 categories. I pray it’ll all be up by this time in April, if not before then, and the long list without write-ups is definitely susceptible to changes (for instance, Get Out is very likely to take the slot in Score that I’ve given to writing about Dawson City: Frozen Time), but there’s no time like the present to write about last year’s movies. So, without further ado, here are my five nominees (plus a few runners-up) in these five categories.

Best Original Score

Dawson City: Frozen Time, Alex Somers - It’d be hard, if not unbearable, for any kind of film to evoke a sense of awe in the miracle of its own existence. Imagine most films trying to do this for their entire hour and forty minute run time and not trying to bash your head in. But Dawson City: Frozen time pulls it off gloriously, partially because the film builds such a convincing case that the survival of its subject - hundreds of rolls of silent film footage previously thought lost recovered in 1978 - is a genuinely impressive achievement borne mostly from dumb luck, but also because it does a great job flexing its central themes and melodies to suit the tone of its current scene. The score isn’t derived from period tunes, instead taking on ethereal and atmospheric qualities that never tilts into opera, guiding us through complex histories in Dawson City. Yes, there’s a lot of awe, but also panic and terror and discovery, keying in to the developments of the town through its relationship to cinema, helping us grasp the idea that immortality and survival itself is so precarious under circumstances like these. In large part, the work here reminded me of what Angelo Badalamenti’s score accomplished for Twin Peaks - using emotional and mood-appropriate chords to guide us through heady, unusual material

Dunkirk, Hans Zimmer - More wall-to-wall scoring, though almost the inverse goal of what Dawson City: Frozen Time is attempting to do. Here the primary objective is delineating between all manner of suspense and fear as Dunkirk’s characters try to survive amidst their own inhospitable conditions. And since those characters are so intentionally blank, his score basically acts like a piece of opera music, a series movements charting the story more than an accompaniment or accent on the film’s scenes. Hope is strung out as chances for escape seem more and more dire, but the score lets the men’s belief that they will be rescued hit as passionately as their fears that whatever latest hell has sprung out of the sky will surely kill them this time. It also has the sense to submerge itself, adding quieter tensions to downbeats as the characters wait for danger to return and search for means to avoid it. Zimmer runs a decathlon based in exhaustion and the very real possibility that these men will die without growing stale or overbearing, keeping the terror lodged in our guts like a bullet.

Good Time, Oneohtrix Point Never - So accomplished in its sonic textures and moods that calling it exhilarating feels like I’m just scratching the surface. With its reprisals of 80’s synth and electronica, Oneohtrix Point Never’s score maintains all kinds of tensions as the film’s narrative barrels forward. From the opening heist that’s doomed to go wrong (and does, spectacularly so) to scenes of the people orbiting Connie getting trampled as collateral damage, the score finds ways to maintain tension in downbeats while ratcheting it up when necessary, flexing and stretching its motifs to flesh out the psychology of the film’s characters. Buries itself deeply under the audience’s skin without falling prey to any of the pitfalls its musical style entails, and manages to be completely enthralling while fitting perfectly into Good Time’s grotty aesthetic.

The Lost City of Z, Christopher Spelman - Admittedly, I’m unfamiliar enough with the pieces Christopher Spelman cribbed from for his score here to have known off the bat that some of his operatic flourishes were actually operas. So, maybe not 100% original. But! It’s still pretty original, and smartly incorporates works from other composers that fully contribute to the already-operatic nature of his score for Z. Throughout, Spelman avoids accenting obvious rises or falls in the narrative in favor of applying a continuous sense of motion, suggesting simultaneous beginnings and endings without pointing where it could all be going. This simultaneity also allows for the score to play to multiple moods and ideas at once, like the melancholy inside a joyous reunion between husband and wife, or finding a great discovery pointing towards an unknown civilization you have no tools to investigate. Just as Percy’s relationship to the jungles, to glory, and to enlightenment all change in themselves and become more enmeshed in each other, Spelman’s score helps us track these shifting mental and emotional pathways in him and his companions.

Wonderstruck, Carter Burwell - Like everyone in Wonderstruck, Burwell has to communicate between two time periods using totally disparate musical eras while including melodies and tunes that can work for both protagonists. He also has the additional challenge of scoring Rose’s scenes like a silent film, complimenting Millicent Simmonds’s performance without overshadowing her own subtle work. And, without succumbing to period clichés or overplaying the “wonder” in Wonderstruck, Burrell delightfully meets the challenges of the film on both sides. He gives both the 20’s silent pastiche and 70’s funk modern accents, keeping in tune with what’s dangerous about this adventure as much as what’s exciting and exhilarating about it. Wonderstruck indeed.

Best Costume Design

I, Tonya, Jennifer Johnson - Who’s to say about degree of difficulty when having such publicly available/iconic outfits as reference for its real person lead character to wear, but that doesn’t mean Jennifer Johnson’s recreations of Tonya’s outfits are completely dazzling to look at. She’s completely in key with the gaudy charm behind Tonya’s costumes, making them convincingly homemade and lower-class rather than using nicer fabric to beef up their dazzle. That energy is given to the background skaters, though when Tonya starts getting “nicer” outfits she still lets the costume retain their unsightly flair. Supporting characters are dressed in broad, colorful strokes that invoke character details without tilting into caricature. Julianne Nicholson’s coach get lots of soft floral prints, while LaVona always seems to have different versions of the same fur-trimmed coat, blossoming into the pelt she’s wearing in her interview scenes. Tailored to accentuate Janney’s imposing height, their length and flatness makes her look even more physically imposing than she already is. The sweaters Jeff wears are more form fitting than the ones Shawn does, but they’re both cozy-looking and character appropriate. A color ensemble of looks that fits the colorful ensemble of characters.

The Lost City of Z, Sonia Grande - Can we just take a second and appreciate how gorgeously dressed Sienna Miller is at all times in this movie? Decked in full-body dresses, gloves, and glorious hats, her looks are eye-catching and elegant without calling attention to themselves or immobilizing her. All the outfits of the explorers look suitable to their environment and grow convincingly tattered as their expedition continues, and Grande  avoids exoticizing the Indian tribes while keeping them specific. More than that, the line about Percy only seeing the lack of medals on his uniform at the opening ball helps clue us in to how the film will insert character details through the baubles they’re wearing, such as the medals decked on the men’s breasts and the jungle-themes ascots Percy begins wearing after coming home from his second trip. Unshowy, unfussy period costuming that’s executed to a tee. Bonus points for the soldier’s uniforms, the fortune teller, and all the suits of the menfolk.

Personal Shopper, Jurgen Doerig - Gives Phantom Thread a real run for its money as the 2017 feature whose central character’s life revolves most around their film’s outfits. Maureen’s near-invisible boss sure is fashionable, with a taste for chic (sorry Reynolds) and, to put it lightly, suggestive outfits. We certainly get some idea of what Kyra is like through the dresses and accessories Maureen picks for her, and it’s almost a plot point that this woman is so unconcerned with her employees that she’d hire a personal shopper that’s also her size. But damn does Stewart wear those outfits well, using them to bolster Maureen’s self confidence as she enjoys the high of those incredible dresses, doing a better job expressing character via fashion show than Jackie. Just as amazing is the character’s own outfits, layers of sweaters and t-shirts underneath the same leather jacket, somehow a coherent look despite clearly being thrown on at the last minute, or at least chosen for function and comfort when sleeping in them over appearance. A sturdy collection of outfits that all reveal something different about the woman wearing them.

Phantom Thread, Mark Bridges - Look, all I’m saying is that I was a woman of means in 50’s London, I’d hire Reynolds Woodcock to make as much of my wardrobe as possible. Every outfit he designs for his clients is completely ravishing, but also somewhat regal and ornate, giving the House of Woodcock a rigid style that’s so far away from chic it’s understandably becoming outdated. It’s a portfolio anyone would be proud to hang their hat on, and Mark Bridges gives equal attention to what the three main players in this game are wearing. Cyril’s black-on-black-on-black looks are too modern in their elegant simplicity to have been made by her brother. He also makes repeat looks count for a lot, as when Alma goes to the New Year’s party - whose other attendees have their own, distinctive style - wearing that green and yellow dress Reynolds made so early in their amorphous relationship. The film simply wouldn’t work if Bridges wasn’t at the top of his game, and he hits a bullseye with every look.

Roman J. Israel, Esq., Francine Jamison-Tanchuck - From the start, Roman’s outfits are noticeably out of place next to the other lawyers we see, not just because the fabric is considerably cheaper but because they don’t seem quite tailored to his size. But they also seem pretty comfortable, and pieces like his magenta suit help him stand out next to the other members of the law firm he’s reluctantly sucked into. After acquiring a good bit of money through illicit means, his new and expensive outfits lose some of that individuality as he gets more in line with a cynical version of the law firm even as it changes itself to meet Roman’s idealism. As the head of that law firm Colin Farrell’s suits are tailored as fine as he is, even accentuating his fineness, while he and his associates go through the exercise of sporting “personalized” ties. The outfits of Carmen Ejogo’s activist leader are believably thrift store but as casually elegant and quietly worn as she is, and it’s exciting to examine the array of protesters meeting with her to see who’s wearing the same kinds of clothing or the imitative, expensive versions of it. Every costume pulls double duty, importing narrative significance and unexpected fashionability to story that didn’t seem to invite it on its face.

Best Production Design

Blade Runner 2049, Dennis Gasner - How can one call something unshowy even if so much of the film seems devoted to showing of its technical elements? My biggest complaint with Blade Runner 2049 is how so many scenes start at the earliest possible moment only to end as late as possible. In moments like K walking past those broken statues of giant, nude women, it seems as though the scenes have no point except to gawk at the physical environments and design elements that Dennis Gassner created. But damn if the sets aren’t something to marvel at. Not only that, but the flat, gray, angular style of these buildings and drawers and junk-sorting tables look as though they were designed with only function and space-saving in mind. Yes, the casino an important character has been hiding out at for decades is very much old and abandoned in the middle of nowhere, but it has round(!) tables, and the remains of some kind of charisma that would’ve made customers spark to the place if it was an active business. The roundness of there and Dr. Stelline’s lab stands out in contrast to practical flatness of everywhere else the film has taken us. Gassner finds a way to make 2049’s sets absolutely stunning, utterly serving the film’s story and the characters inhabiting those spaces without courting tropes of outright dystopia or any obvious visual charisma to make them easy eye-candy.

It, Claude Paré - Repeat watches of It have keyed me in to the criticism that the film suffers a real trade-off between scene-by-scene conceits being fully realized while larger ideas about growing up and more aggressive King themes aren’t so much left for the audience to fill in as much as avoided or vaguely implied. But even as the film petters out, the production design remains indelible and attentive in every scene. The kids’ rooms are  individualized with clutter and personal objects - love the circus wallpaper in Georgie’s room - and Pennywise’s lair feels like its own, unique haunted house, even into the sewers. Derry itself is believably 80’s, grounding the town and playing to its normalcy rather than a rotting host for an unspeakable evil it’s turning a blind eye too. But the real achievement here are the film’s props, from the MISSING CHILD posters piled on top of each other to the history book Ben reads at the library about the Easter tragedy, evoking a bloody and haunted history even as the town continues to ignore it, brutally emblematized in the endless tower of mementos in the sewer. Bonus points for the army of clown dolls and the dummy in the coffin Richie encounters.

mother!, Philip Messina - Right off the bat mother! wins points for creating a house that’s convincingly rustic while also balancing ornate flourishes. It’s big but internally coherent, and has a creepy basement without being a creepy house, though it certainly suits the spooky atmosphere and unraveling narrative Aronofsky is going for. But the real kicker comes in the second act, as the house grows and devolves into a place of worship and war in honor of Him and his poetry. The transformation of so many rooms into war zones and actual altars is utterly remarkable and unfussily done despite the immense work it must have taken. It even looks as well-made as it should given the short, dream logic time frame that all of this is occuring in within the film, as though a stage crew is swapping out sets with every new scene of a play, wrecking this carefully built world in only a matter of minutes. Perhaps the least showy and most immaculately constructed part of an aggressively combative film.

The Lost City of Z, Jean-Vincent Puzos - Yes, a lot of the action takes place in the lush jungles of the Amazonia. But those jungles are believably rendered at every step of the way, teeming with life without falling into exoticism. And the manufactured majesty of the “natural” doesn’t diminish the quality of the homes and communities we get to see. It’s fascinating to see the homes of the colonizers living in those jungles, sturdily made outposts with surreal flourishes and decadent wealth pouring from its most scourigible parts. There’s also the communities built by the Indians that Percy encounters, each clearly their own tribe, as well as the attention paid to wartime trenches and the grand mansions and meeting places of the Explorer’s Guild. The homes he returns to after every journey help illustrate his growing obsession with Zed and his shifting place in English society, going from an upscale house with vine-covered exteriors and leaf-print wallpaper in the bedroom to a cottage practically drowning in the trees surrounding it.

Wonderstruck, Mark Friedberg - Between his miraculous outings with Todd Haynes on Far From Heaven, Mildred Pierce, and now with Wonderstruck, plus his gargantuan work on Synecdoche, New York, can someone please get Mark Friedberg a Wikipedia page? Hell, his work on Wonderstruck alone should’ve qualified him for that, let alone any awards recognition at all. There’s more applause here for deeply specific bedrooms and homes, but there’s even greater praise for the attention he gives to shops and museum dioramas and the way he, along with every other technician, juggles making aesthetics 50 years apart internally cohesive while finding avenues for both timelines to speak to each other, even outside of shared locations. Friedberg may even have a greater challenge in including objects older than both time periods, like the book advertising the Cabinet of Wonders or the impersonal but captivating dioramas and galleries inside the museum of natural history. But damn does he pull it all off, ending the film with its richest achievement in the deeply personal map that this mysterious father of Ben’s created, a diorama that’s as much a diary, and a story told with non-diegetic sets.

Best Visual Effects

Blade Runner 2049, John Nelson and Co. - Easily the film that has been in every incarnation of this category since I first saw it, and the one I’ve had the hardest time starting a write-up about beyond asking “How did they do it?!?!?!”. But reader, I have to ask. The blending of CGI landscapes with the film’s already-impressive production design is smooth and unobtrusive. Joi, in all her incarnations, is a pretty incredible achievement. Fluctuating in transparency and functionality, moving in and out of spaces and characters, in skyscraper and human-sized incarnations, the character is fascinating to watch, the constant reminder that she’s an object making Ana de Armas’s warm, emotionally rich and humanizing performance all the more interesting. Dr. Ana’s Stelline’s manufactured memories coming together is practically a short film onto itself, and the ghostly singing holograms are as affecting as the decrepit casino Deckard himself haunts. Consistently breathtaking work that keeps finding new ways to surprise you.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, Christopher Townsend and Co. - I’m still amazed by how fully I’ve come around to Marvel’s side after their 2017 output, but without a doubt I’m still most impressed by the visual style and deliciously saturated color palette that Guardians so perfectly manages. Without ever tipping over into Wonderland garishness, the film indulges in practically every color imaginable in creating its sets and environments and weapons. The hot, neon pink of Yondu’s whistling spear-thing is easily my favorite, as is the blueness of the sky and orangeness of the ground as Gamora sits outside after fighting with Peter, completely unaware of Nebula soaring behind her. Meanwhile, the creation of Ego’s planet and his palace is a truly massive achievement, as are the dioramas detailing his long, hilariously sexy travails across the universe. And they find a way to make Kurt Russell young again without creeping into the uncanny valley. Yes, there’s that one effect in the big climactic fight that weirdly makes it look like Ego and Peter are apparating at each other like in the Harry Potter films, but it’s only a slight bump in a film that’s otherwise full of visual wit and bursting to the brim with as much color as possible, practically daring you to look at it and not enjoy yourself.

It, Nicholas Brooks and Co. - It’s absolutely ridiculous that the campaign team for Warner Bros. couldn’t even muscle It into the VFX shortlist. If repeat watches have cooled me on Bill Skarsgård’s performance, the graphic impact of Pennywise still hits as hard as that first showing in a packed theater. The many ways that Pennywise contorts his limbs, changes size, takes on new and equally terrifying forms, are as terrifying to me as they are to the kids. Seeing him unwind from that fridge to scare Eddie is still one of the most indelible sights of the year, as is his Meshes of the Afternoon arm reaching out for Georgie. Bonus points for the detail given to the dead kids, particularly the headless Easter Egg casualty and Betty Ripsom.

mother!, Tamriko Bardadze and Co. - Compared to the scale some of these other teams are operating on, I keep thinking of mother!’s achievements as being somehow smaller. Effects like the burning wound on the floor where a man is killed, the blood from the dying man himself, the beating heart of the house, that pulsing, spindly Thing hiding in a toilet, all are brief but completely impactful. But then I think back to larger spectacles like the house beginning to rot when Lawrence’s character is at her most distressed, the occasionally barren and occasionally lush Outside we get only glimpses of. Then, even bigger spectacles, like every single way that her house is blown apart, and the charred but living and talking body of a character who has instigated its greatest destruction, and I have a hard time calling its achievements small in any way. Supporting, maybe, but as fully realized as it needs to be, and as mad as everything else that mother! is doing.

War for the Planet of the Apes, Joe Letteri and Co. - I’ll admit upfront there’s a ceiling to how much I can be in awe of a third incarnation of digitally remastered apes, the look of each film improving with technological advances even if I don’t see anything as inherently “new” here as some of my other nominees. But even with that caveat in place, there’s no question that the apes have never looked better. Compare the trailer for Rise in 2011 to what we get in War, and it’s even more obvious how much effort the VFX team has put into making Caesar and his tribe look as realistic as possible. Their faces have never been so expressive; their fur looks so real you could practically touch it, or at least imagine how it feels and smells as they hop between increasingly inhospitable ecosystems, caked in snow and mud and dirt and blood. Even if I’m not as wild about the series as its most ardent fans, their adoration is completely earned with the knowledge that this trilogy has gone out with its most auspicious technological achievement to date.

Best Makeup

Atomic Blonde, Paul Pattinson - A shout out first to the wonderful styling of the minor characters, from the punk hackers working under Bill Skarsgård (and Skarsgård himself) to the functional Russian antagonists, individualizing members on both sides where it counts while knowing who to keep relatively anonymous, even after repeat viewings. John Goodman and Eddie Marsan stand out among the suits dealing with this case, though all the mysterious officials wandering around the story are fantastically groomed. James McAvoy seems to have lost all morality along with his hair, legible as either “disastrous” or still pretty foxy, depending on who’s asking. Still what most interests me are the wigs that Charlize Theron and Sofia Boutella’s characters wear throughout the film, wigs that are undeniably wigs to the audience that are treated like actual haircuts in the film. Both of them, Charlize especially, wear the kind of wigs that spies would usually wear to disguise themselves as other people, something only highlighted in how the actual wigs Lorraine wears seem more plausible as real haircuts than her typical bleach-blonde cut. It’s the first real sign that everyone in Atomic Blonde is playing more roles than they let on, and that the film is willing to be far more ambitious than you’d expect from the setup.

The Death of Louis XIV, Antoine Mancini and Lluís Soriano - There are wigs, and then there’s the magnificence resting on Louis XIV’s head, some kind of lion’s mane passing for a cloud that, like the king, is ready to float off to the beyond at any moment. The gradation of his physical health is the spectacle the whole film is premised upon, and it wouldn’t work if the makeup team wasn’t doing their job so marvelously, oscillating between wilting wigs, full white wigs, or unbelievable and youthful brown wigs. His physical decline is more subtly rendered than my comments on his hairdo let on, and the gangrenous splotch on his leg is appropriate unsettling. Equal attention is given not just to Louis but also to his aides, consorts, and doctors, delineating who is and isn’t bothering to maintain appearances while tending to their king. The Sun God is disintegrating before their eyes, everyone doing their damndest to keep him alive, and still some people have the time to put on makeup and maintain their wigs? Every look is utterly in tune with Serra’s unusual tone and wildly ambitious aesthetic, across a whole host of characters.

The Lost City of Z, Juanita Santamaria - Boy are Charlie Hunnam and Sienna Miller put together with period appropriate glamour that could easily pass for movie-star shine. Robert Pattinson’s facial hair is wildly unkempt but still well-trimmed and completely convincing, far more than whatever died on Channing Tatum and Mark Ruffalo’s faces in Foxcatcher. Even better is watching the wear and tear of the jungle taking hold of these men’s bodies, smearing them with dirt and sweat, as well as the infections ravaging their bodies, appropriately painful-looking and and revolting without overdoing it The various menfolk of the Adventurers guild are properly groomed and shaved, and the multiple native tribes are given individualizing looks that avoid broad caricature or blurring them all into one large, amorphous tribe. And all of them are gracefully aged as the film progresses, which is frankly as tough an object to find in most movies as a lost civilization.

Phantom Thread, No Credited Head - There’s been a lot of well-earned praise about how gorgeous Phantom Thread is, from its costumes to its cinematography to that ornate, endless house. But how about a round of applause for how stunning those actors look? Daniel Day-Lewis and Lesley Manville are immaculately assembled, from their hair (his naturally graying, hers a wonderfully dyed dark brown) to his eyebrows to her lipstick, all without covering up the age and weariness on their faces. Both look a little gaunt around the edges. Vicky Krieps gets that no-makeup makeup look too, with no attempts to make her look more conventionally or exotically pretty, keeping her gorgeous and comparatively plain next to the other models and muses of Reynolds’s that we see. The background players are given their fair share of attention too, but there’s no denying the main attractions here.

Wonder, Arjen Tutien - Much in the same way that Wonder is a tougher film than I expected but still a remarkably sweet one, I admire the way that the rendering of Tremblay’s disfigurement neither overdoes the surgical scars and deformities nor softens them to the point of being “cute” or “cool”. There’s plenty of room for Tremblay to give a performance underneath all that makeup without simultaneously flaunting the fact that Tremblay is acting under all that makeup the way Darkest Hour so frequently does. The makeup team also does right by the rest of the cast, especially in giving Julia Roberts and Owen Wilson careworn, normal-parent looks better than most films with superstars in those roles manage to pull off. It neither condescends to the normalcy of the characters nor sneaking in ways to remind us that hey, isn’t Julia Roberts friggin’ beautiful. Maybe not as ambitious as Darkest Hour or It, but it’s more consistent across a host of characters while perfectly managing a tricky central character than both films are without showing off or dropping the ball, nailing its assigned tasks to a perfect tee.