#there were so many quotes i could pick but i deleted the mini list i made like an idiot

[metukika]

is it selfish to just want to look at the blue sky?

[annantlegacy]

Sparkly, a fic for @theronshanweek-official.

Day 2: Relationships. Words: 919, rated G, on Ao3 also.

Theron squinted at his datapad, the flickering radiance assaulting his oncoming headache as he tried to focus on supply manifests, personnel lists and...whatever that last thing was. Schematics for a tank? Or was his vision just blurring? His implants ached and his eyes felt like they were a size too big for their sockets. Not a great feeling. He set his datapad down, just avoiding a spot on the bar where some violently green drink had been spilled. He hoped it was a drink, anyway--the liquid’s resemblance to the engine coolant Koth always had him hauling around the Gravestone was uncanny.

Raucous laughter erupted behind him. Curses and threats, slurred and jesting--mostly. He could pick out Len’s and Tora’s voices, the “conversation” cut short by Tora’s distinctive cackle. Sitting at the bar on Theron’s right side, Koth craned his neck, looking for someone.

“Senya!” Koth swiped out an arm abruptly, the woman in question (and still in her impossibly white armor) dodging easily out of his sloppy reach. 

“Come back here Senya. Jerk!” Koth called after her, but he was grinning--wow, that guy had a smile--and Senya’s soft and pleasantly husky laugh followed in her wake. Deprived of his first target, Koth turned to Lana and launched into a diatribe about local food, gesticulating wildly enough he almost spilled his own drink which, Theron noticed, looked like a mini supernova suspended in a glass. Nice touch. 

Lana regarded Koth, blinking like a cat, and shoved a lock of hair behind one ear. She seemed less unimpressed than usual by Koth’s antics, a hint of a smile on her face.

What in the stars?  

Everyone was so...sparkly. Effervescent. Or, whatever the shouty-equivalent of that would be for Len and Tora, who were now arm-wrestling and singing. At least, it sounded like it might be, in the broadest sense, music-like sounds. 

Thereon had seen this kind of sparkle before: whistling in the dark, some people called it. But to him, it was a sign that people really were resilient, even in the face of terrible, unfair and world-breaking things. He’d forgotten about hope, after Ziost. Forgotten it when he’d been disavowed before the whole Revan mess. And if he wasn’t careful, he could forget again, now when the world needed that hope the most. Theron sighed, turning back to his datapad for one more token attempt at working.

“Theron, you really should try to relax.” Lana’s voice dragged him out of broody thoughts.

“Yeah. What she said,” Koth added, pointing to his cocktail. “I don’t know what this is, but it’s like an explosion of happiness and, uh, fire. Definitely not bad for your vital organs at all.”

“Thanks but there will be time for relaxing when--” Theron started, his voice fading to nothing as a familiar person stood at the far end of the cantina, pausing in the entryway before picking his way through the crowd.

“Why hello there, ‘Outlander.’” Lana offered her wry greeting, and Theron could hear the air quotes around the title.

“Hello yourself.”

Theron’s stomach dropped down to his boots at the sound of the other man’s voice, a shiver of both heat and cold dancing along his arms and spine. Outlander, they were calling him. The one who had saved the world in Rishi, and who knows how many times before that, and now...well. Most present in Theron’s mind right now, the man he loved so much that it made him a little dizzy. A lot dizzy.

Because “love” of any kind was a thing Theron had always understood on some theoretical level, but didn’t know much about in practice. He’d figured out somewhere along the way that he loved Master Zho as adoptive family, and Teff’ith as the obnoxious, trigger-happy sister he’d never wanted and now would give his life for. He was pretty sure he loved Satele and Jace in that inexplicable way one loves estranged parents. And he’d found friends along the way, often in the strangest places. The little disaster team on Rishi--Jakarro and C2-D4, Lana (friendship had been a slow and wary thing with her, for sure), and now with the crew of the Gravestone. And the Outlander, a thread weaving through his life since Manaan.

Theron swallowed, pushing away the sudden urge to flee to the ‘fresher or hurl himself off a cliff.

“Hey, look who it is,” he managed to say, the words coming out in a rush. “Don’t worry, we didn’t really start without you,” he added, sheepish. He vaguely registered the other man greeting him, Lana and Koth interjecting by turns, the crash of furniture as Len and Tora’s “friendly” little contest went a good bit south of friendly. The cantina music swelled to a crescendo, a soaring voice and dreamy beats filling the air. Theron felt like he’d thrown back ten of Koth’s happy-drinks. The man he’d dreamed of, written (and deleted and written again times a million) letters to, had given his trust and his heart to moved close to Theron’s side, cantina neon glinting in his eyes and a soft smile curving his lips.

In that moment, Theron understood it: the effervescence, the hope. The way that, because of the other man’s smile, he felt like he could fight the Eternal Empire single-handed. The way that in this one moment, surrounded by friends and comrades and yes, love, he was himself pure light--a supernova caught in his heart, his soul so, so very sparkly.

[mrmichaelchadler]

Home Entertainment Consumer Guide: December 27, 2018

10 NEW TO NETFLIX

"2 Fast 2 Furious" "Apocalypse Now" "Avengers: Infinity War" "Baby Mama" "The Fast and the Furious" "The Innocents" "Kill the Messenger" "The Little Hours" "Maps to the Stars" "The Theory of Everything"

8 NEW TO BLU-RAY/DVD

"Assassination Nation"

I'm only human and so there's a bit of an impulse to include a release in this column on which I'm quoted on the cover, even if the movie itself is something of a mixed bag. The quote "'Mean Girls' meets 'The Purge" is from my Sundance viewing of this divisive genre film, and is more descriptive than praising. What's been interesting to watch about the conversation around this abrasive, incendiary castigation of internet culture is that I have been very lonely in my middle ground opinion. I like its ideas more than its execution, but find it fascinating how many people either LOVE or HATE this movie. Honestly, we need more movies like that—movies that provoke conversation and debate. So you should see this not because I'm quoted on the cover but because you should pick a side ... or join me in the neutral zone.

Buy it here 

Special Features Deleted/Extended Scenes Gag Reel Trailers

"Bad Times at the El Royale"

This is another movie that people seemed to either embrace or abhor and I finished with a shoulder shrug. Maybe that's not fair. I mostly liked Drew Goddard's single-setting bloodbath, but I'm stunned that anyone sees enough to like or hate here to include in either ten best or ten worst lists for the entirety of 2018. On the positive side, the ensemble is fantastic, especially Cynthia Erivo, Jeff Bridges, and Chris Hemsworth. It's never boring, weaving several subplots on a very bad night at the El Royale hotel into one backstabbing tapestry. It's also too long, too unfocused, and slips through your fingers once it's over. There's a tighter, smarter version of "El Royale" in this one that could have been great. But this one is still pretty good—available On Demand now and on Blu-ray on 1/1.

Buy it here

Special Features Making Bad Times at the El Royale Gallery

"Fahrenheit 11/9"

Did Michael Moore's latest provocation influence the election as he so clearly hoped it would when he dropped it in the heat of the season? Maybe. Probably not, though. The fact is that Moore doesn't have the impact he once did, but should that be the only way we judge him as a filmmaker? As an influencer? It will be interesting to see how his most overtly political films like this one stand up with a couple decades of history behind them. For me, the best pieces of "Fahrenheit 11/9" don't focus on the Trump Presidency but the various stories of the last few years that led to the voter apathy that was arguably the biggest reason he won. And, say what you will about this film's lack of focus, there's a great mini-doc buried within this film about the Flint water crisis that you really should see.

Buy it here

Special Features None

"The Predator"

After the TIFF premiere of Shane Black's latest reboot/sequel to the hit '80s sci-fi/action film, I suspected that I would be in the minority of critics who enjoyed it but didn't expect it to be quite so drastic. I stand by my 2am take in Canada that this is a fun action movie that understands what worked about the original film while also taking some of the same ideas in a new direction. No, it's not going to be anyone's favorite movie of 2018, but it's a quick, enjoyable rental on a Saturday night, and it works even better at home than in the middle of the night in Toronto.

Buy it here 

Special Features Deleted Scenes A Touch of Black Predator Evolution The Takedown Team Predator Catch-Up Gallery

"Schindler's List"

Only this column could go from "The Predator" to "Schindler's List," but that's how we roll at the HECG (and the byproduct of alphabetical listings). For the 25th anniversary of one of the best films of the '90s, Universal has upgraded Steven Spielberg's Oscar winner with a 4K release that reminds viewers why this movie was so rapturously praised when it came out in 1993. Given 4 stars by Roger on its initial release, he didn't wait long to put it in the Great Movies pantheon, and it's a movie that has held up remarkably well. The 4K release is accompanied by a new documentary called "Schindler's List: 25 Years Later," adding to the sense that this is one of the essential 4K Blu-ray releases of 2018.

Buy it here 

Special Features NEW 4K RESTORATION OF THE FILM SUPERVISED BY STEVEN SPIELBERG DOLBY VISION/HDR 10 PRESENTATION OF THE FILM NEW Schindler's List: 25 Years Later - Featurette NEW USC Shoah Foundation Story with Steven Spielberg (2018) Voices from the List - Featurette Let Their Testimonies Speak - Stronger Than Hate About IWitness (2018) AND MORE...

"A Simple Favor"

Paul Feig's mystery/comedy looked like a disaster before it was released. It was coming out at a time of year when studios are known for dumping movies that they don't know what to do with, and it didn't play any fests or get much in the way of critics screenings. And then it dropped and most people were pleasantly surprised. A reasonably big hit (almost $100 million worldwide), "A Simple Favor" filled a hole in storytelling for adults that Hollywood simply doesn't care about as much as they used to. In a time when the mid-budget movie is disappearing, it feels like everything is a part of a franchise or a low-budget indie. The mid-budget filmmakers went to TV. And so it's so heartening to see a solid mid-budget flick that offers a night of entertainment for grown-ups away from Netflix. I'm a little less high on the flick than everybody else (I think Blake Lively is amazing but the movie sags a bit when she's absent), but it's totally worth a rental. 

Buy it here    Special Features 3 Audio Commentaries with Cast and Crew 8 Featurettes Gag Reel Deleted Scenes Flash Mob

"Starman"

When the acolytes of John Carpenter talk about the horror icon, they often stick solely to, well, his horror films. How many pieces can the internet produce about the greatness of "Halloween," "The Thing," or underrated pics like "The Fog" and "Prince of Darkness"? Lost in a lot of the talk about Carpenter is what is actually his highest-grossing film outside of Mike Myers, 1984's "Starman." This has always been a film that I hold close to my heart as I was nine when it came out and, well, that's a good age for this movie. It's an underrated film with a truly great performance from Jeff Bridges. As Roger wrote 34 years ago, "Actors sometimes try to change their appearance; Bridges does something trickier, and tries to convince us that Jeff Bridges is not inhabited by himself."

Buy it here 

Special Features NEW They Came from Hollywood: Re-visiting STARMAN – featuring director John Carpenter, actors Jeff Bridges, Charles Martin Smith and script supervisor Sandy King-Carpenter Audio Commentary with director John Carpenter and Jeff Bridges Vintage Featurette Teaser Trailer Theatrical Trailer TV Spots Still Gallery

"Venom"

Ah, "Venom." Is this smash hit a good movie? Noooo. It's clunky and weird. And yet there's something in here that almost brings it together and that's the totally committed lunacy from Tom Hardy. Whether he's talking to the symbiote inhabiting his body or eating a live lobster out of the tank in which he's sitting, there's something inspired in so many of his choices. Sadly, the rest of the movie totally pales in comparison, including something I didn't think was possible: flat performances from Riz Ahmed and Michelle Williams. As much as I don't want to see "Venom" again, I'll be curious about "Venom 2" just to see if Hardy's energy can be featured in a project that deserves it. 

Buy it here 

Special Features Venom Mode: When selecting this mode the film will engage informative pop-ups throughout the film to provide insight on the movie's relationship to the comics, and to reveal hidden references that even a seasoned Venom-fan may have missed! Deleted & Extended Scenes: These deleted and extended scenes will give fans even more of the Venom action they loved in theaters! Ride to Hospital – Eddie and Venom take a ride to the hospital. Car Alarm – Let's just say that Venom is not fond of car alarms. San Quentin – Extended post-credits scene at San Quentin. From Symbiote to Screen: A mini documentary about the history of Venom in comics and his journey to the big screen. Interviews with Avi Arad, Matt Tolmach, Ruben Fleischer, Oliver Scholl, and Director and Comic Fanboy Kevin Smith. The Lethal Protector in Action: Go behind the scenes with the production crew and learn the secrets behind the awesome Motorcycle stunts, wire stunts, and drones. Venom Vision: A look at how Ruben Fleischer came to the project, gathered his team, and made Venom a reality. Utilizes interviews from cast, crew, and producers as well as Fleischer himself. Designing Venom: Designing and creating Venom meant a huge challenge for VFX artists; follow the amazing journey. Symbiote Secrets: Blink and you may have missed it! Enjoy the hidden references throughout the film. 8 Select Scenes Pre-Vis sequences: See the progression of the visual effects, storyboards and fight chorography compared to the finished film. "Venom" by Eminem – Music Video "Sunflower" by Post Malone, Swae Lee (From Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse) Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse Sneak Peek: Meanwhile in another universe …

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