#top 250 films

[estellaestella]

DUNE:PART TWO ranks #19 by IMDb ranking (which is based on complicated maths) of the Top 250 movies of all time!!! The movie is #16 when the list is sorted by IMDb rating (different math!), and it's #1 by popularity at the moment. Also, since the list is always "live" these rankings are probably going to change. But WOW, what a cool achievement!

[gothicprep]

netflix's business model is soooo bad. clownishly bad. we'd be here all day if i unpacked all of this, so i'll just focus on one thing for now:

if you look at the box office top 10 at any given time, it's generally dominated by IP films. even the non-IP films, the biggest one this year has been oppenheimer, and that's a christopher nolan movie. a lot of people know what a christopher nolan movie is and want to go see that already. so even something that's not an IP film per se is still partaking in stuff that is known, which makes it functionally very similar.

but the way that you get successful IP is that you market it, and you get people talking about it. netflix doesn't have successful IP because they don't do marketing, and they don't get people talking. and there's sort of a chicken and egg problem here, which is that without the marketing, they're not gonna have the cultural cachet, and without the cultural cachet, they're not going to have IP because their stuff is forgettable.

they also, i think, explicitly design their movies and tv shows to be kind of forgettable. their whole model, if you go back a couple of years, has been "we want to feed every niche". and what that means is that they can't develop a coherent brand identity in the way that hbo or a24 or vertigo comics developed a coherent brand identity. what does a netflix movie or series feel like? you can't describe it. sometimes it's the sandman, or sometimes it's house of cards, sometimes it's some sort of kids show or reality show, sometimes it's is it cake. the only thing that ties those together is that netflix owns all of them. that's it. there's nothing else.

on a broader level, it's feeding its subscribers things that are intentionally disposable and is designed as a commodity, both in the way that they market it and the way that they roll them out so that they have no cultural lift and traction. this creates a problem for stars because the only way you can get paid big money by netflix is if you are already a big brand, which means you need to be already associated with something that's big and marketed and has a cultural footprint before you get to netflix. will smith gets a giant paycheck for bright, adam sandler gets a giant paycheck for doing his movies, but somebody who isn't a household name can't build one on netflix. which is going to create big problems for them when it comes to talent, because they aren't making anything that people will watch 100 times and be talking about 20 years later.

there are some exceptions here, of course. the stranger things kids have managed to build name recognition from being on the show. or the oscar bait stuff that they put out at the end of the year, like roma or marriage story, doesn't feel anywhere near as commodified. but in the grand scheme of how much stuff they produce, cases like those are drops in the bucket.

[bratbby333]

choso kamo — the boy next door

synopsis you were completely oblivious to his inner turmoil. but choso liked it that way. cw nsfw, stalking, somnophilia, voyeurism, overstimulation, dirty talk, cream pie wc 4.1k

author note i received three separate requests for pervy!choso, dom!choso, and boynextdoor!choso so i decided to combine them into one story to celebrate hitting 250 followers! eeek i love y'all so much, i hope this scratches the right itch in y'alls brains ♡ proofread and edited up by my favorite person in the known cosmos: @remlionheart *+:｡.｡ thank you for pushing me to finish this

Choso was a constant fixture in your life. For as long as you could remember, it was always you and him. His house neighbored yours and your families had become close over the past fifteen years. Your childhoods were intertwined, filled with joint pool parties, barbecues, and movie nights. The two of you even shared a babysitter when your parents would go out on double dates. You carpooled to school, played in the cul-de-sac until the streetlamps came on, snuck through each other's windows when your parents thought you were sleeping; inseparable. You guys even ended up at the same university after graduating high school. You were finally home for the summer and you couldn’t wait to spend time with your best friend, uninterrupted by the hecticness of college.

A brisk knock resonated through your home, the door answered by your mother. 

“Hey! It’s so nice to see you again,” Choso grinned, nodding gently as he stepped into your foyer. You perked up at the sound of his voice echoing through your house. It was difficult to see one another as much as you had wanted this semester; you both explored different hobbies and found separate friend groups while in college, but you always made sure to find the time. You hadn’t seen him in a few weeks, though; the stress of final exams kept the two of you apart. It had been far too long.

“How have you been, honey? How was your semester?” your mother chirped as she engulfed him in a quick embrace. The two of them shared genial words as they caught up with one another. They continued to chat before being interrupted by the heavy sounds of your excited feet thumping down the staircase. He turned to greet you, only to be entrapped in a bearhug, the momentum pushed his body into the wall behind him.

“Choso! Missed you so much,” you squealed, voice muffled as you buried your face into his chest. You breathed him in, the familiar scent of his cologne dancing through your nose. His cheek found the top of your head as his warm hands rubbed gentle circles into your back, rocking you side to side. Your mother smiled with adoration at the two of you. He squeezed you tight before he pulled away, peering down at you. You noticed a light dusting of pink that surfaced on his skin as you looked up at him, but chalked it up to the sweltered heat of summertime.

“I missed you too, sweetheart,” he replied before returning his gaze to your mother while still holding on to you. ”Exams were tough but I’m happy that it’s finally over,” he added.

His attention fell back to you as his hands rubbed against your arms, “But, I’m all yours for the summer!”

*ੈ ✩‧₊˚

You sat next to him on the floor, backs pressed against the foot of your bed. The two of you shared a pizza as a silly rom-com played on your TV. You took turns catching up on each other’s lives while the film faded into background noise. You felt renewed in his presence, the youthful glow of his features reminded you of how he was when he was younger. But your chest began to ache as you thought about how the time you spent with one another would become harder and harder to come by. The conversation lulled a bit, and you willed yourself to voice your concerns to Choso.

“Sometimes I wish we could go back to how things were,” you blurted, hands fidgeting with the pizza box. Choso quirked his eyebrow at the statement. You met his gaze, smiling softly, bringing your knees to your chest. You sighed deeply. Being away from him hurt more than you thought it would, and you never recognized how much you needed him until you saw less of him.

“I miss being a kid…I miss the way we were,” you continued, “Not a single care in the world. I feel like the older we get, the less we’ll see each other. I don’t want that, Cho,” you mumbled, reextending your legs. His heart thrummed at your earnest confession as he leaned forward and captured your hand in his.

“I’m not goin’ anywhere…I can promise you that, sweetheart,” he reassured, his thumb rubbing the back of your hand. 

The conversation quieted, his words of consolation seemed to ease your mind enough for you to fixate on the screen. He watched you through his peripherals as you giggled at the corniness of the movie. Choso tried his hardest to follow along, but there you were, sat before him in a thin tank top and skimpy pajama shorts. He sent a silent “thank you” to the heavens; the record-high heatwave that plagued your city gifted him such a magnificent sight.

He side-eyed you, his vision tracing along your body. He took another bite of his pizza as he drank you in; dinner and a show. His vision followed every dip and curve of your almost fully exposed legs. He was thankful that you felt comfortable enough around him to dress how you pleased, but his dark heart wished you were sitting in just a thong, or better yet, fully nude. His eyes meandered north, hovering over the peaks of cleavage that your shirt didn’t cover. He swallowed thickly, nearly choking on his food when another giggle erupted from you, your breasts bouncing as you laughed.

He smiled inwardly, your fear of losing him warmed his heart. He wasn’t going anywhere. How else would he be able to see you like this; all nostalgic for him, the desperate expression on your face sent waves of arousal through his veins. His desire to know how you’d look splayed out underneath him rocketed through his body as he envisioned your fucked out face when he feathered hot, wet kisses along your neck and plunged two thick fingers deep inside you…how pretty you’d look just for him. What sounds would you make when his throbbing cock was fully enveloped in your gushy walls? Would you whimper and whine? Would you cry out for him? Rake your nails down his torso with your eyes blown wide? He so badly craved the answers to his searing questions.

Your laughter panged through his chest, snapping him out of his trance. You were completely oblivious to his inner turmoil. But he liked it that way. You continued to sit so good for him, eyes casted toward the TV. If only you knew the innocent relationship you had manifested in that sweet little mind of yours was one-sided. For him, it was dirty–downright filthy and sinful. But you would never know that.

Blood rushed between his legs as he shifted on the floor. The movie had about twenty minutes left; he was trying to hold out until then. He was desperate for release, anxiously anticipating the thick load he would shoot out at the thought of you, though he would pretend that it was going inside of you, instead. Oh, how he wanted to breed you. How soft you’d look carrying his spawn. He shook his head as he cleared his throat, single handedly fighting off every demon known to man that was telling him to pounce on you. He couldn’t. It would ruin the close friendship that took years to curate. It would kick him off the pedestal you placed him so highly on, tarnish the clean-cut version of him in your parent’s mind. He battled with his own thoughts as he mindlessly stared at the TV. 

The end credits rolled and Choso stood abruptly.

“I’ll catch you tomorrow, okay? Gotta get some sleep,” he said, readjusting his pants. You looked up at him, confusion evident on your pretty face.

“I thought you were spending the night,” you pouted, before pushing yourself off the ground.

“I know…I’m sorry, sweetheart. But knowing us, we’d stay up all night watching TV and talking instead of actually sleeping,” he played off. The ache between his legs intensified at the thought of sharing a bed with you like you usually did when he slept over. But he can’t. Not tonight…not like this. Normally he was good about keeping his composure, but tonight was different. Your puppy dog eyes didn’t help, either. He so badly wanted to see those same eyes gaze up at him while his cock was shoved down your throat. His dick pulsated against the soft fabric of his shorts as he shadowed you toward your bedroom door, taking an internal note of how good your ass looked as your shorts rode up between your plush cheeks. He nearly lost it as you skipped down the stairs, your precious mounds bouncing in all the right places. You opened the front door for him, spreading your arms to hug him goodbye. He opted for a side hug, knowing damn well you would have been able to feel his hard on from the full-frontal contact. 

*ੈ ✩‧₊˚

You closed the door, pressing your back against it as you wondered what had gotten into Choso this evening. He was always up for a sleepover. You shoved your hurt down, embarrassed by your apparent clinginess. A shudder ran down your spine at the thought of your neediness pushing him away. Your warm body glided toward the fridge, throwing it open and basking in the cool air as you grabbed yourself a drink. You shook the shame from your mind as you shuffled back up the stairs. You peered out your window and into Choso's room; it was dark. He must’ve gone straight to bed. You opened the bay windows to your bedroom. The cool air danced through the panes, swirling around the confines of your dwelling. You inhaled deeply before stripping down, settling peacefully atop your sheets; it was far too warm to be under the covers.  

Choso surveyed you from the comforting shadows of his room. He did this frequently before the two of you had moved away, watching you get ready for bed with a firm grip on his shaft. 

“That’s it, pretty…take it all off f’me,” he muttered. His strokes sped up as he watched you undress, the moonlight that seeped into your room illuminated your heavenly body so perfectly. He huffed as he watched you retreat to your bed, his hand stilling around his cock. The thought of you wasn’t enough for him tonight. He needed you.

An hour or so passed before he ascended the tree that stood tall next to your window. His clammy hands gripped the railings that lined your small terrace as he heaved his body over, careful not to make a sound. He had done this many times before, whether his presence was expected or unbeknownst to you. He crept through the open window and entered your room, settling himself in the chair next to your bed. Your nude frame emanated the most ethereal energy, your bare chest rose and fell rhythmically, the soft gasps that fluttered from your parted lips sent blood straight to Choso’s groin. He palmed himself through his pants, leaning back a bit to shove them down his legs. His hand paced up and down his length agonizingly slow, before he stopped dead in his tracks as soft groans emerged from your throat.

“-oso,” was all that was audible. His blood ran cold as he leaned closer to your slumbered body, ears ringing in hopes to hear more. Was that–No…it couldn’t have been. You shifted a bit, another moan breaking through the silence of your room.

“Mmm…Choso,” you whimpered dreamily, one hand moving to rest just under your navel. His heart rate spiked. He watched as your hand traced lower, snaking its way to your precious cunt. You rubbed sleepy circles in your clit as your head lulled to the side, soft, sweet whimpers dancing from your parted lips. It was now or never. He pulled his shorts back up as he situated himself on the edge of the bed, rubbing his hand against your shoulder. 

You stirred a bit after a few gentle shakes of your body, your eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness of the room. Your body went rigid as your eyes focused on the outline of a person sitting before you, but the familiar smell of Choso met your nose and kept you from jumping out of your skin. You closed your eyes again, the hand that was playing with your wet cunt moved over your body to grab his hand, squeezing gently. Choso nearly broke down at the contact, the stickiness that he so badly needed graced his skin, numbing his brain. 

“Hey, Cho…y’scared me. Thought you weren’t sleeping over,” you murmured. Choso’s conscious worked overtime to keep his composure leveled as he exhaled deeply. 

“Seems like you needed me, though,” he chuckled. You hummed in response, your sleep-ridden mind not registering his comment. You began to doze off once again before panic rumbled through your body as you finally recollected the dream you were just immersed in. Then the realization hit. You shot upright, tearing your hand away from Choso as you grabbed for the covers, attempting to shield your naked body from him. You clicked on your bedside lamp, turning to Choso with your brows furrowed deeply. Your best friend just caught you in the middle of a wet dream. A dream about him. Embarrassment coupled with shame as you held the sheets tight against your body. You were thoroughly confused–what was he even doing here? How much did he hear? You wanted to protest, to plead your case, to interrogate him. A million questions buzzed around your brain, but his hand was quick to cover your mouth. 

“S’okay, sweetheart. It’s just me,” he soothed. He kicked his shoes off and kneeled beside you, hand still firm against your face. Your shoulders were tense, but you relaxed a bit at the baritone voice that fell from his lips.

“Did you have a nice dream?” His question seemed rhetorical. He felt your face flush underneath his palm as you nodded slowly. He removed his hand and you spoke up immediately.

“How’d you know I–”

“Was watching you sleep,” he shrugged. “I’ve wanted you for so long…figured it was a lost cause. But it seems the feelings are mutual, huh, sweetheart?” he cooed, his body loomed over yours as his palm brushed your face, cradling your cheek.

“You were tryin’ so hard to fight it…to pretend those dirty feelings for me didn’t exist…isn’t that right?” He mused. You glanced down at his crotch, the heavy bulge pressed firm against his thin shorts. You audibly gulped, your breath caught in your throat before meeting his eyes. You nodded at him again.

“Bet you dressed like that on purpose…such a tease,” he chastised, thumbing your cheek.

“Gotta make up for lost time, yeah?” He ripped the duvet off of you and moved so he was hovering over you, your body laid out underneath him, his arms placed on either side of your head. 

“Cho…I—we shouldn’t,” your voice wavered, suddenly unsure if you were trying to convince him or yourself. Your hands rested on his broad shoulders. “I don’t wanna lose you…don’t wanna ruin what we have,” you added, worry painted across your face, eyes fluttering back and forth between his. You were splayed out beneath him, fully nude, every dark secret of yours laid out in front of Choso. The hungry look in his eyes caused your arousal to drip onto the sheets beneath you. 

“Wanted this for years, pretty girl. I already told you I’m not goin’ anywhere,'' his head dipped down to lick a thick stripe down your neck. “You gonna let me take care of you now?” he questioned, lips pressed against your flesh, nipping at the sensitive skin. Your back arched immediately at the sensation. You moaned softly in response as you ran your hands up and down his toned back. 

“Tell me, pretty girl,” his fingers danced down your body, teasing the skin around your core. “Tell me you want me as much as I’ve wanted you,” he whispered in your ear. 

“W-want you…Cho. So bad…needed you for s-so long,” you begged, your brain fogged and voice airy while your hands clawed desperately at his back. He smirked at you as he sat back on his heels, tearing his clothes from his body. Your eyes dragged up and down the man you had grown up with. A part of you knew how you felt about him, knew how much you needed him. But you didn’t understand the full depth of that need until he was kneeled before you, perspiration glistening along his toned body as he repositioned, laying himself along the bed, his face settled right above your dripping cunt. The way he looked at you through his luscious, jet-black lashes set your pounding heart ablaze. 

You couldn’t fully comprehend what was happening. All you could feel were the sharp aches in your core as he teasingly ran his fingers through your slit. He smiled against your thigh as he plunged his fingers in immediately. You gasped at the intrusion before succumbing to the pleasure as the pads of his fingers massaged your sweet spot.

There was a sense of urgency behind his movements; the lack of time he gave you to adjust to the stretch, the way he was thrusting so fervently into you and how hungrily he bit at your flesh–it was overwhelming. He pumped into you, tirelessly working to coax an orgasm out of you. The first of many. He tilted his head down to watch his fingers disappear inside of you. He used his other hand to rub your sensitive clit, before quickly replacing it with his tongue. He wanted to drink you in for as long as he could, your juices satiating the hungriest part of him.  

His eyes blew wide, “Fuck–you’re so sweet, pretty girl,” he breathed, lapping at your core. He needed more, needed you to fall apart on all of him–his fingers, his mouth, his cock. You were going to take everything he gave you. You cried out for him, your hips spasming against the bed. He grinned before latching back on to your clit, sucking harshly, working into you like it was his life’s mission to please you. And in his mind, it was. He was set on releasing a decade’s worth of pent-up frustration on your pretty little body.

“F-fuck Cho–ah!–I’m gonna…” your voice trailed off as your pussy clenched down on his fingers. He groaned at the tightness, tongue still swirling around your sensitive bud. A shudder ran down your spine as your orgasm ripped through your body. He continued to pump into you, suckling harshly against your clit before swirling around your entrance to ensure he drank up every drop. 

He knew he should wait and give you time to recover. But the way your body twitched and writhed for him ripped away the sense of gentleness and morality that he usually had. It was all too much. He wanted to ruin you, to punish you for holding out on him for so long. He needed to be balls deep, needed to mold you around his cock–he had waited years for this. He sat up abruptly, wrapping your shaking legs around his waist as he lined himself up with your soaked entrance. Your chest heaved and your eyelids grew heavy while your body worked through the comedown. He pushed into you, fully sheathing himself inside your pulsating walls. Your eyes widened while your hands pushed against his abdomen. 

“Wait, Cho–”

“S’okay, sweet girl. I got you…focus on me,” he soothed, his pelvis flush against you as he took a hold of your wrists, pushing them over your head and pressing them against the headboard. He found an unrelenting tempo in you. You body spasmed and squirmed at his pace, jolting each time his thick cock brushed against your still sensitive g-spot. He was stuffed so deep inside of you, savoring the way your messy pussy sucked him in. He released your hands and leaned back, finding his bearings on your hip bones, pulling you toward him to meet his thrusts. Grunts rumbled from deep in his chest as he felt you clench around him. He looked down to watch himself disappear inside you, the squelching sounds and labored moans that filled the room made him choke.

“Nasty fuckin’ girl…you’re lovin’ this aren’t ya?” he teased. You couldn’t fathom a response. Your body had passed the point of overstimulation as his brutal pace pulled another earth-shattering orgasm from your wrecked body, painting his abdomen with your squirt. He dropped his head back, animalistic sounds flying past his lips as the warm spray splattered onto his skin. He pulled out of you before shoving right back in. You cried out, body trying to squirm out of grasp.

“C-can’t…s’too much,” you sobbed out. You meant it, it was too much. But the pleasure that clawed its way through your trembling frame was unreal; addictive, even. He simultaneously numbed your body and made you feel every sensation in the known universe. 

“Uh uh…almost done, pretty–stay right there,” he growled, “Just give me one more.” He wanted to live in this moment forever. Every stolen glance, dirty thought, and shameful ejaculation to the thought of you was nothing compared to the way your pretty little pussy clenched around him. He had ached over the mere thought of you for years and his body brimmed with arousal at his darkest dreams coming to fruition. And though he wanted to paint your sloppy walls with his thick seed, the wanton desire for you overpowered his need for release.

Your eyes rolled back in your skull as your shaking hands searched for any part of him to hold on to. You were a panting mess, fat tears running down your face. And it was all for him. He was drunk on the way your fucked out face lazily looked up at him as you fell apart on his cock. He made quick work of burning that image on the inside of his eyelids.

“Doin’ so good. Stay with me, sweetheart,” he grunted, his hips slamming into you. It was so sloppy now…so nasty. He fucked into you with feverish passion, and your body shook as the coils in your tummy crept up once again. 

“C’mon…just one more. Know you can do it,” he urged, his aching cock absolutely obliterating you. His fingertips gripped your flesh so tightly, he prayed it would bruise. He hoped his mark would be left on you, an aching reminder that you belonged to him. You always had. He fucked into you, his tip kissing your cervix so perfectly. You cried out, clenching down on him again, your third orgasm crashing through you in a blinding haze. 

“S-shit…so good. God–you’re fuckin’ milking me,” he growled out as he twitched inside, swears and praises cascaded from his parted lips as he chased his own release. It only took a few more thrusts before his hips stuttered against you and he finished deep inside, pumping you full of his cum. He remained sheathed within your walls, his palms running up and down your dazed out frame.

He leaned down, catching your lips in a needy, wet kiss. You were stunned into silence, your body cemented to the bed, convinced that you had lucidly dreamed this entire ordeal. You winced at the ache of Choso finally pulling out, missing the deep stretch of his cock as he leaned over to scour your drawers for a rag to clean you up. He feathered gentle kisses after each pass of the cloth. He laid by your side and you curled into him immediately, his arms snaking around your fragile body. 

“I can’t believe that just happened,” you whispered, breath shaking. He smiled before kissing the top of your head. “But I’m so happy it did,” you added, pressing yourself deeper into his side as his fingers brushed along your skin, soothing you toward a deep, satisfying slumber. Choso reveled in the dream-like trance he found himself in. His heart soared at his achievement that was years in the making, his body crossing the line that divided reality with heaven. He finally got you, and he was never, ever letting you go.

*ੈ ✩‧₊˚

author notes: thank you so so so much for 250 followers...i literally cannot believe it. if i could remove a piece of my heart and send it to y'all i would

my inbox is open and i'm always working thru my requests, feel free to send your suggestions here ☾

every like, comment, and reblog makes me sob uncontrollably...your support means the world to me xx

© bratbby333 on tumblr. all rights reserved. please do not distribute. 2024.

[countv0ncunt]

Stop telling me to watch good movies. I refuse.

[doyoulikethissong-poll]

Jamiroquai - Virtual Insanity 1996

"Virtual Insanity" is a song by British funk band Jamiroquai, released on 19 August 1996 as the second single from their third studio album, Travelling Without Moving. The song interpolates parts of Jocelyn Brown's 1984 post-disco hit "Somebody Else's Guy". "Virtual Insanity" was a number-one hit in Iceland and reached number three on the UK Singles Chart, as well as becoming a top-10 hit in Finland, Ireland, and Italy, the song also climbed to number 38 on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart upon the single's release in the US in 1997. The song also earned the band a Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group. Thematically, the lyrics are concerned with issues like overpopulation, human genetic enhancement, eugenics and ecological collapse. In the beginning of the song's album version, a sound that is sampled from the 1979 sci-fi horror film Alien appears. It is the sound sequence when the S.O.S. signal appears on the screens of the spaceship Nostromo at the start of the film. The music video for "Virtual Insanity" was directed by English filmmaker, director, and screenwriter Jonathan Glazer. At the 1997 MTV Video Music Awards it won 4 out of 10 nominations; Breakthrough Video, Video of the Year, Best Visual Effects and Best Cinematography. In 2006, it was voted 9th by MTV viewers in a poll on music videos that 'broke the rules'. In addition to heavy rotation on MTV and other music television networks, the video for "Virtual Insanity" has amassed more than 250 million views on YouTube as of August 2023 and has seen renewed attention on TikTok, gaining millions more views through various memes and remixes. It has been parodied, referenced, remixed or imitated in countless music videos, television shows, and internet memes. On a personal note, I love each and every one of you who tagged the poll as "#rearranging furniture" in your reblogs! 😂💖 "Virtual Insanity" received a total of 80,7% yes votes!

[anyataylorjoys]

TOP 10 most obsessively rewatched horror films as of October 12th, 2023 according to Letterboxd:

1. Scream (1996) dir. Wes Craven 2. Halloween (1978) dir. John Carpenter 3. JAWS (1975) dir. Steven Spielberg 4. Scream V (2022) dir. Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett 5. The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975) dir. Jim Sharman 6. Midsommar (2019) dir. Ari Aster 7. The Thing (1982) dir. John Carpenter 8. The Shining (1980) dir. Stanley Kubrick 9. IT (2017) dir. Andy Muschietti 10. Hereditary (2018) dir. Ari Aster (view 250 film lineup)

[haveyouseenthismovie-poll]

Hello, all!

As you may know, the request inbox has been closed for several months now due to the massive amount of submissions I received at the start of this blog. The good news is that all of the submissions have officially been queued! This means that the askbox can finally be opened again, which will happen sometime before July 4th. I will make a post announcing when it's open again, though please be aware that there will be changes to the submission rules. Additionally, it will likely not be open for as long as it was previously to avoid having such a long queue of requests again.

This also means that this blog can go back to posting movies from "top 250 movies" lists as it was doing prior to the temporary switch to requests-only posting. Starting in July, the first poll of the day (posted at 12PM EST) will be a movie taken from Letterboxd's Official Top 250 Narrative Feature Films list (as we have already completed the IMDB top 250 list.) The other four daily polls will be requested films.

Hopefully this sounds good to everyone! I'm excited to start receiving requests again and I hope you're all excited to start submitting again in July.

[respectthepetty]

Why I react when GMMTV acquires more BL Boys like Pokemon

TLWR: GMMTV is bigger than we think

For the people in the room who don't understand why some of us (aka ME) get concerned every time a new artist is announced at GMMTV, let me explain myself (and capitalism) to you.

I'm talking to you.

Yes, you. No, don't roll your eyes. *gently holds your face in my hands* Look at my face. I'm serious. Look me in my eyes. I understand that you think I'm overacting and being ridiculous, but I want you to know why I keep harping on this. And I'll try to make it quick. I promise.

Remember this scene from Jack & Joker when the rich people were playing a version of Monopoly? And Jack asked if they were "just playing with people's lives"?

That's capitalism.

So what does that have to do with a Thai talent agency?

Well, it's becoming a monopoly. Amazon and Google are considered monopolies. Legally. They have been sued for it. You might think that there is no way a Thai company worth millions is on the same level as two American companies that are worth trillions (yes, trillions), but Amazon and Google didn't start that way.

And neither did The ONE Enterprise which is the parent company of GMMTV, One31, Change2561, and a subsidiary of GMM Grammy (which at one point Nadao Bangkok was under it), plus countless other companies like Parbdee Tawesuk, Atime Media, and Exact.

Google started off as a search engine. Now we have Chromebooks, Google phones, Google software, Google maps, Google shopping, Gmail, and so much more like it owning YouTube. But there are still other companies that have search engines, so no big deal! We can just use those. But the reason Google was sued as a monopoly by the Department of Justice (and won) was because Google makes it very hard to use those other search engines since everything else it owns only allows us to use Google products. Therefore, there is no competition simply because Google has enough power to control what we, as the consumer, see.

But this didn't start overnight.

A lot of other companies who produce Thai QLs exist, just like all those other search engines still exist, but The ONE Enterprise produces the most QLs through its various branch companies. But not only do those companies produce them, they contract other smaller companies like Studio Commuan, Dee Hup House, Trasher Bangkok, Hard Feeling Film, and many more, which is normal, but that means at any given time, at least ~65-75% of the QLs from Thailand are from one company. But, but, but, The ONE Enterprise's channels also sells slots to other companies, so their QLs can be watched on GMM and other channels. And, remember, this enterprise has only existed in this form since 2022.

So in two years, that enterprise has gone from being behind maybe less than half of the QLs to having a hand in at around two-thirds of them if not more, which doesn't include the fact that the actors in those QLs also have concerts, music contracts, and so much more.

Also, the companies with the largest profits in Thailand are from the finance (banking), real estates (hotel), tech, and medical sectors. Yet GMM Grammy is the ONLY entertainment company in the top 250 from Thailand. That doesn't include the other parts of the conglomerate.

I know I'm throwing a lot around and it seems disconnected because I'm trying to not make this too long, but know this, if The ONE Enterprise already has a hand in, at the lowest estimate, 60% of all QLs made in Thailand and continues to acquire more actors like Studio Wabi Sabi's fleet when it restructred, the 40% that is left for everyone else will continue to shrink. Domundi/Mandee has about 25 actors. GMMTV alone has about 150. Smaller companies can get more actors just like GMMTV can, but with what money when they have to pay to air their shows on The ONE Enterprise's channels while The ONE Enterprise's shows get moved behind paywalls internationally which gives it even more money? And with what crew when The ONE Enterprise has the smaller houses on contract plus its own fleet of talent? And with what incentives can these other companies give actors when they don't have the capability of giving them a record deal, a hosting job, a reality show, merch options, and so much more that The ONE Enterprise can because IT. OWNS. EVERYTHING?

And most importantly, what is allowed to be created when these smaller companies have to abide by one company's rules so their shows can air?

Good for these actors going where the money is, but it's worrisome that The ONE Enterprise is *the* place where most of the money is, and it's only existed in this form for two years.

Money is power. QLs are Thailand's soft power, which can and does influence policies, laws, and society which means people's lives. So, once again, if one company has the most QLs, the most actors, and the most money, it has the most power.

And one entity having the most power in any sector is never a good thing.

[891movies]

Top 25 films (of the second 250 I watched for this project)

Around two years ago I posted a top 25 list of the first 250 films I watched for this project. Since I have now watched another 250 films and discovered many new favorites, the time has come for a second top 25!

Without further ado, I present them in chronological order (because if I actually had to rank them this list would never get out of the editing stage):

The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938, dir. Michael Curtiz, William Keighley)

This movie is a storybook adventure come to life, charming, entertaining and beautiful to look at (I miss you, technicolor!). Errol Flynn has an unmatched energy as the titular character and Olivia de Havilland is the picture perfect leading lady, with the exact right mixture of grace and fire. This is may not be a particularly complex or groundbreaking film but it does what it does perfectly and taps into that childlike sense of wonder that few films manage so well.

A Matter of Life and Death (1946, dir. Emeric Pressburger, Michael Powell)

One of my most delightful discoveries since starting this project have been the films of Powell and Pressburger - I'm not sure what other directors could boast releasing three of the greatest films of all time in three consecutive years (those being A Matter of Life and Death, Black Narcissus and The Red Shoes). This film mixes a deeply moving love story with a metaphysical court room drama to great success and this strange mixture is mirrored in the film's form, with some experimental but mostly conventional cinematography.

Ace in the Hole (1951, dir. Billy Wilder)

As grim and cynical as it is sharp, this movie plays out like a feverish nightmare. I was honestly shocked at how dark this movie got, considering the time and place in which it was made, but that is absolutely what the story needed and I'm glad Wilder got to tell it this way.

A Star Is Born (1954, dir. George Cukor)

Has there ever been another star to reach the heights of emotional intensity that Judy Garland did in her time? I was lucky enough to see this movie on the big screen and I can't imagine watching it at home, because Garland is so larger than life, I can't see how a smaller screen could contain her. That's not to take anything away from James Mason, who gives a tragic and intense performance for the ages.

Johnny Guitar (1954, dir. Nicholas Ray)

Joan Crawford in your butch black shirt save me! Save me, Joan Crawford in your butch black shirt!

Bigger Than Life (1956, dir. Nicholas Ray)

Surprise, it's another Nicholas Ray melodrama! Ray had this habit of creating highly emotional stories that hid some sharp social commentary, but the commentary is barely hidden this time and it is shockingly subversive. Mason gives another intense performance but here it tilts fully into unhinged territory and he is terrifying to watch. The ending feels a little slapped on but it also feels like the only way Ray could get away with everything that came before.

Mon Oncle (1958, dir. Jacques Tati)

This movie feels like a precursor to Playtime, one of my all-time favorite films (incredibly novel opinion, I know). The sets are meticulously designed and a delight to behold, and Tati's performance as Monsieur Hulot (the titular uncle) is charming as always. I especially adore the contrast between the traditional and modern Paris, as well as the unconventional sound mixing that refuses to privilege dialogue, leaning into cinema's strengths as a visual medium.

Jules and Jim (1962, dir. François Truffaut)

This is by far my most recent watch on this list and it's still kind of percolating in my head but I loved it when I watched it and my fondness for it has been growing daily. It has that charming, youthful irreverence that the French New Wave is so known for, as well as one of the most complex depictions of a female character I've seen in french cinema.

What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962, dir. Robert Aldrich)

Bette Davis is one of my all time favorite actresses and this is one of my all time favorite performances. She puts everything into this role and the rest of the film compliments her perfectly; it's funny and dark, tragic and absolutely unhinged. And Joan Crawford is good too, I guess.

Tokyo Olympiad (1965, dir. Kon Ichikawa)

This blew my mind when I first watched it, seeing what incredible feats documentary filmmakers were capable of so early on in the genre's history. It is also the perfect counterpoint to Riefenstahl's earlier documentaries about the Olympic games; where she emphasized nationalism and feats of strength, Tokyo Olympiad focuses on the humanity of it and the power this event has to bring us together. Probably my favorite section of the film focuses on an athlete who was the sole representative of his newly independent country and who did not qualify for the finals in his field (unfortunately I don't remember the country or the sport). But just the fact that he made it to the Olympics, that he got to represent his country on the world stage, is an incredible feat in and of itself, and the film recognizes this.

The Wild Bunch (1969, dir. Sam Peckinpah)

This movie is everything a western should be - exciting, violent, and deeply critical of the ugly history it is depicting. The characters are not good people but they are compelling and incredibly fun to watch.

Woodstock (1970, dir. Michael Wadleigh)

Another mindblowing documentary that pushes the ability of the medium to its limits. It captures a unique moment in time, a spirit of rebellion and hope for the future that unfortunately feels worlds away from our current cultural landscape. It is also an incredible display of the emotional power of music. I cried during Janis Joplin's performance and it felt impossible to match, but then it is immediately followed by Jimi Hendrix and I could feel my soul descend to a higher plane of existence. It is my life's goal to see this film in the theater.

In the Realm of the Senses (1976, dir. Nagisa Ōshima)

Everything is sex, except sex, which is love and beauty and death all intertwined and impossible to separate.

Atlantic City (1980, dir. Louis Malle)

Rarely has a setting felt so integral to a film. Everything from the story, to themes, to the characters revolves around and is subservient to the setting of a declining Atlantic City whose glory days are far behind it. It is also a microcosm of American society at large, at least as people were experiencing it in 1980 (although it's pretty relevant today, I would say).

Gallipoli (1981, dir. Peter Weir)

This is the movie that definitively convinced me that anti-war films are indeed possible to make, just not in Hollywood (Come and See had me thinking this, but Gallipoli proved to me that it wasn't a unique feat of just one film). We barely see the war in this movie but it is all about the incredible tragedy of it.

Koyaanisqatsi (1982, dir. Godfrey Reggio)

I was completely expecting this movie to put me to sleep and instead, it was one of the most viscerally intense and haunting viewing experiences of my life. It is hypnotic in the very best way and somehow captures the ennui of modern life without a single word being spoken.

Paris, Texas (1984, dir. Wim Wenders)

This film is an intoxicating mixture of tenderness and brutality, and a deeply moving depiction of our longing to reach out and connect to one another. This is the other film on the list I got to see in the theater and the cinematography was absolutely breathtaking on the big screen.

Trust (1990, dir. Hal Hartley)

This is such a delightfully strange film, almost but not quite set in our reality. The strangeness makes the gentleness of the love story all the more touching; this is one of those movies that makes me happy to be alive.

Safe (1995, dir. Todd Haynes)

I have been kind of obsessed with this movie since I saw it, so much so that it will actually be a focal point in my master's thesis. Everything in the film, from the cinematography to the soundtrack to, especially, Julianne Moore's performance, builds to this overwhelming sense of anxiety and dread, and Haynes' refusal to give an easy answer (or any answers at all) makes it all the more unsettling.

Scream (1996, dir. Wes Craven)

I do like scary movies, yes. I especially like movies that are scary, funny, and feature a bloody final girl and (more than) a touch of homoeroticism.

The Blair Witch Project (1999, dir. Daniel Myrick, Eduardo Sánchez)

Look at that, another scary movie! I am probably more susceptible to this movie's attempts at scares than most viewers, because I've only very recently started to build any kind of tolerance for horror, but it got me so good. The simplicity just makes it better; it may only do one thing but it does it very, very well.

Dancer in the Dark (2000, dir. Lars von Trier)

I'm always kind of hoping when I watch a new Lars von Trier movie that maybe I won't like this one, because I don't know what it says about me that I enjoy his films so much but I know that it can't be good. But this movie belongs just as much to Björk, who gives an incredible acting performance and an all-time great vocal performance. I was left a sobbing wreck; to this day, just humming 'The next to last song' to myself brings a tear to my eye.

Volver (2006, dir. Pedro Almodóvar)

Penélope Cruz is a revolution in this movie, my god. She brings the emotional sincerity that the film needs to keep its elaborate plot grounded. As always, I appreciate Almodóvar's clear love for strong and complicated women, as well as the often messy relationships between them.

Phantom Thread (2017, dir. Paul Thomas Anderson)

I love a good twisted love story and it is beautifully told here. Form also compliments function to a tee; a story about an obsessive compulsion to create perfect art is mirrored in the absolutely meticulous cinematography and costuming. Daniel Day-Lewis gives the performance of a lifetime here and while I do miss seeing him in the theater, what a film to end on!

Roma (2018, dir. Alfonso Cuarón)

This is one of those movies where nothing happens, in that there isn't a traditional plot (events still take place, obviously), because it's about life, man. It's a type of film that needs a deft hand and a filmmaker with something to say, and Cuarón has both in spades. Funnily enough, this movie reminds me a lot of Paris, Texas; it has that same mix of tenderness and harshness that compliment each other.

[8flix]

Before you go. Any comments on byler? 🎤

Ah, yes. The byler predicament. Allow me to muddy the waters even more.

But first, a disclaimer: to be clear, I have no conclusive/confirmed information about season 5. What I know are inferences made from previous leaks, combined with what we now know as fact.

A little more on that before I get to Byler:

The leak came from outside of Netflix; a third-party private company that offers closed captioning services (as confirmed by Forbes, then eventually Netflix). The leaked videos of Heartstopper Se3 and Arcane Se2 are low resolution (640x266 / 640x480) encodes of unlocked edits (ie: edits that are subject to change at the network's discretion), and devoid of VFX. If you're a fan of either show, don't waste your time because it will only spoil the finished product.

That being said, I doubt that there is any video of ST5 episodes 1 through 3, as purported by the so-called "hacker" (I use that in "quotes" because any schlub with an email address could have accessed the server without restriction -- the login app had no restrictions to the inhouse videos).

So, aside from the fact that Netflix will aggressively pursue civil and criminal charges against the source (if they ever find the person) -- a threat that any legit hacker would certainly ignore (unauthorized access to a computer network is already a federal crime, regardless of whether or not something was "taken" and/or released publicly) -- I think there won't be any video of ST5 leaked because it doesn't exist.

A legit hacker would have released it already, defying both Netflix and the FBI, and in such away that would make tracking them down impossible. What is there to lose? Nothing for a legit "hacker." And let's be honest: this wasn't a "hack" of top-secret government documents. And the "hack" will not cause long-term financial damage to a publicly traded company like Netflix. In an election year, the Feds have more important cyber criminals to go after than a scriptkiddy looking for notoriety in the Fortnight Discord app.

Realistically, it's doubtful more than a cease-and-desist letter from Netflix to that Twitter influencer dude, and perhaps firing the IT guy who forgot to flick the privacy toggle on the login app at the closed-captioning company, will come to fruition. And like I said, a legit hacker has zero fucks to give, so threats of a civil lawsuit or prison time would mean nothing to them because their OPSEC would be 100%.

Also, it's my belief that no videos of ST5 will come out because of how TV series are made. Principal photography of ST5 is around 12 months (December 2023 - December 2024). That's a 5-day work week, 16-hours per day. Not including holidays, reshoots, and unforeseen delays, about 48 - 50 weeks in total -- so, about 250 - 300 days of shooting (a movie is often 30 - 120 shooting days). Post production -- which includes editing, music, VFX rendering, ADR, etc. -- will take at least 6 months. For a $200 million series like ST5, 4 - 6 weeks of per-episode-editing is not unheard of. Stranger Things is arguably a Netflix legacy. It's not only going to be protected, but perfected.

Season 5 is being released in two-parts. Part 2 will likely still be in post-production when Part 1 is released. To give you an idea of how close producers come to hard deadlines for series: I watched (legit) screeners of Locke & Key Se2 -- the final two episodes -- before they were complete -- 2 weeks before the world premiere. It's that close.

ST5 shoots chronologically, with some exceptions. Meaning, they film in order of episode. (Movies, on the other hand, film according to scene and schedule -- scenes that take place in the same location, but spread throughout the movie and take place on different days, are shot consecutively). The leak happened in late June (apparently), which would mean that episodes 1 through 3 would have been shot and edited by May. That's not realistic. Like, at all. If I were a betting man, I'd say that episode 1 is still being edited as I write this. There is still 4 months of principal photography remaining.

My expectation is to see trailer #1 during the Super Bowl in February. And October 31, 2025 as a release date for Part 1.

My expectation is a December release for Part 2.

Hardcore hype and teasing for 10 months.

This is my guess; based on personal experience with shows and movies that are not Netflix properties.

Okay, so, Byler...

If you believe the 2022 "definitely not leaked Se4 scripts" are definitely real... then Will is "fully resigned to knowing that he’s just ripped off the Band-Aid." #Byler, as we know it, will never come to be and #Mileven is endgame.

Or, if you believe the "definitely not leaked Se4 scripts" are definitely cap, then Byler is, in fact, the real endgame.

Given the circumstances, I am obviously the former. And, as much as I hate to say it, Will and Mike will never be a couple. 99% confident about that one.

Whichever side you take, in the words of Dr. Emmet Brown, "You're not thinking fourth dimensionally." (hint)

Will Will find love? No. There are bigger plans for Will. Conversely, there are plans for El that go way beyond teenage love. Again, if you believe the fake scripts to be real, then it will become apparent in ST5 that Will and El share a unique connection. My inference is that they are related. If not in the current timeline, then in the alternate timeline and reality (that will be revealed in Se5). "Young versions" of "Will, El, Mike, and the others," have already been cast to appear in Se5. But, IMAO, they're not the "young versions," but the alternate timeline/reality versions. Back to the Future, and Terminator are huge influences. As is the JJ Abrams movie "Super 8" (watch the movie, there are so many similarities with it, and Stranger Things).

I'll also add that there were scenes filmed in 2020/2021 that were meant to be included in season 5. I think -- if memory serves -- it's in or at a church and touches on the theme of "occult murders". So, I wouldn't be surprised if Eddie Munson makes an appearance.

In my professional opinion as a writer (excluding what I may or may not know about ST5): regardless of what scripts you've read -- official, unofficial, fake, real -- the series endgame has already been revealed on screen. I'll explain:

In general terms, for any television series with a definitive finale, and a pre-determined ending, writers follow a blueprint: specific plot points that must revealed along the way so that the story makes sense to viewers -- even to those with conflicting opinions.

If the writing is done correctly, then (for example) when something is revealed in episode 25, viewers will experience a lightbulb moment: "Oh yeah, I remember the references during episodes 2, 5, and 15."

So, using the Byler vs Mileven plotlines, it's plausible that either outcome is still possible. That's the brilliance of Stranger Things' writers' room (I say that sincerely).

Clues have been dropping since episode 101. Spoken dialogue, secondary dialogue, music selection (read the lyrics), character names, specific dates, shooting locations, pop culture references, carefully choreographed shots and scenes, numbers, dates, background props... Everything contains a piece of a puzzle that reinforces what is already known, and reveal what will soon become obvious.

Seriously, I don't know the ending of ST. And honestly, in my experience, it's more likely than not that only the Duffers and a small handful of Netflix/21 Laps execs know the real ending. For a series as big as Stranger Things (with an estimated season 5 budget surpassing $200 million), don't be surprised if more than one ending is filmed. Certainly, more than one has been written. It's not uncommon to leak misleading (but highly plausible) information on purpose. Netflix marketing peeps are top in their field, and outside-the-box thinkers.

What I do know is that the endgame -- be it canonical or other -- will completely blow you away and go down in history as Netflix's most watched finale.

Or, it will be the biggest let down since The Sopranos ending -- the first one AND the do-over.

[mi6-cafe]

Our Week 3 LDWS Drabbles are here!

Prompt: Your drabble must clearly connect to one of the Bond films or books. Also, the first and last line of your drabble must be the same sentence.

Word count: 250

You can read their drabbles HERE and vote for your top three favorites using THIS FORM!

Thank you so much not just to our writers, but also to our readers and voters—we couldn’t have this competition without any of your valuable contributions. <3

We’ll release voting results on Monday. Good luck with week three, writers!

And join us in discord Saturday night at 9pm eastern to read the drabbles aloud!

If a different time works better for you, you can also join us in Discord for an ADDITIONAL readalong! Myn is hosting a readalong this Saturday, October 12 at 4pm east coast time!

[unimportant-ramblings]

I'm so mad that End of Evangelion got kicked off the top 250 narrative film letterboxd list I need to log off

[mizldrizl]

What is where in Beyond Evil?

I always wondered where certain locations in the show actually are and how far each of them is apart from the others. Thankfully, the scriptbook has some addresses -- partially fictional, of course -- I can work with.

1. 문주시 (Munju-si) - 파주시 (Paju-si) (*si = city)

In one of the Blu-ray features, they mention that they filmed Dong Sik's neighborhood in Paju.

문산읍 (Munsan-eup) is part of 파주시 (Paju-si) (*eup = small town). It is easy to guess how they came up with the name "문주."

문산천 (Munsancheon River) = 문주천 (Munjucheon River)?

Trivia: The house used as Dong Sik's family house is actually in 용인시 (Yongin-si), which is about 100 km away from Paju. While filming the scene where Joo Won and Dong Sik are on their way to arrest Kang Jin Mook in Ep. 8, the actors momentarily thought they should take Joo Won's car because Manyang Supermarket is in Paju. They realized, soon after, that it is only a few minutes' walk from Dong Sik's house in the show.

2. Han Joo Won's apartment

The scriptbook says Joo Won's apartment is in 서울시 마포구 (Mapo-gu, Seoul-si) (*gu = district).

According to the Naver navigation service, it would take 35~50 minutes from Joo Won's place to Manyang by car. Mind you, I enter a city hall or its equivalent in "from" or "to" for the cities that are not familiar to me, and that's what I did here. Still, it would be safe to say that it takes about 45 minutes commuting for Joo Won, maybe an hour, tops, when the traffic is bad.

3. Han Ki Hwan's house

서울시 강남구 (Gangnam-gu, Seoul-si). The scriptbook says "청암동 (Cheongam-dong)" as well, which is clearly a little tweak from 청담동 (Cheongdam-dong) (*dong = town); it is in the northern part of 강남구. It takes about an hour from here to Joo Won's place by car, but thinking of Seoul's traffic, it might take a bit longer than that depending on the time of the day.

4. 서울경찰청 (Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency)

Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency is in 서울시 종로구 (Jongno-gu, Seoul-si). It takes 25~35 minutes from Joo Won's apartment, and 45~55 minutes from Han Ki Hwan's house by car. But again, it's Seoul, so you can never be sure.

5. 옥산군 (Oksan-gun) - 옥천군 (Okcheon-gun)

옥산군 (Oksan-gun) is where Chief Nam's lakehouse is (*gun = municipality). The actual location is called 옥천군 (Okcheon-gun). It would take 3~3.5 hours from Manyang by car.

6. 부산시 (Busan-si) & 울산시 (Ulsan-si)

In Ep. 8, Dong Sik says he and Chief Nam once arrested a culprit in Ulsan and went to Busan together to have pufferfish soup before going back to Seoul.

It takes 4.5~5 hours from Seoul to Ulsan, and another 1.5 hours from Ulsan to Busan by car. From Manyang to Busan, it would be about 5 hours by car. If you take a KTX train from Seoul Station to Busan Station, it takes about 2.5 hours.

7. 강원도 (Gangwon-do)

In the last episode, it is mentioned that Joo Won is working at a station in Gangwon-do (*do = province).

You can see that it is a fairly big province. As of November 2023, there are 17 police stations in Gangwon-do. Meaning, Joo Won can be anywhere 80~250 km from Manyang. Because I am a shameless JWDS shipper who hopes that Joo Won can go see Dong Sik both in Manyang and Oksan easily, I would like to imagine Joo Won is working at the station in 원주시 (Wonju-si), which would be about 2.5 hours from either Manyang or Oksan by car.

(*All estimated times are based on around 4 pm on a weekday. Of course, if one drives at dawn or in the middle of the night, it would take a much shorter amount of time.)

[hollywoodevilgossip]

RED ONE

Budget$200–250 million Box office $83.2 million

Box office

As of November 17, 2024, Red One has grossed $32.1 million in the United States and Canada, and $51.1 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $83.2 million.[6][5]

In the United States and Canada, Red One was projected to gross $30–35 million from 4,032 theaters, with some independent sources predicting a debut as low as $25 million or as high as $40 million.[3][31] The film made $10.9 million on its first day, including $3.7 million from Sunday and Thursday night previews. It went on to debut to $32.1 million, topping the box office.[2] Speaking on its opening, Variety concluded that "it'll take a Christmas miracle for Red One to become a profitable hit at the box office," but noted that streamers like Amazon, Apple, and Netflix don't necessarily need their films to be successful in theaters to be considered a success, citing 2023's Killers of the Flower Moon, which debuted to $23 million against a $200 million budget but later became a hit on Apple TV+.[32][33]

Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 33% of 132 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 4.4/10. The website's consensus reads: "Wrapped in slick packaging but wholly lacking in holiday magic, Red One is a ho-ho-hum action-adventure."[34] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 34 out of 100, based on 35 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable" reviews.[35] Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A–" on an A+ to F scale, while those polled by PostTrak gave it a 78% overall positive score, with 57% saying they would definitely recommend it.[2]

Peter Bradshaw, writing for The Guardian, gave the film one star out of five, describing it as "profoundly depressing and blandly sentimental" and concluding "this commercial and formulaic slice of content is a toy destined to be forgotten, not by Boxing Day, but mid-November."[36]

Glenn Garner of Deadline Hollywood said the film "blends genres for some family-friendly holiday fun with a generous dose of self-aware absurdity" and wrote: "Yes, it's cheesy, but this movie is best when it leans heavily into the cheese. If that makes your eyes roll, keep in mind this is a Christmas movie ultimately intended for kids who've made it all the way through the MCU on Disney+ twice and their parents now need a reprieve. There are still some jokes aimed at the cold-hearted adult who will inevitably be dragged along on the family cinema outing.

[aradiaravenswood]

Aradia’s Project List

Hi friends! This pinned post will show all of my completed, in progress, and planned fanfic works. Works that have been posted will include a link to the fic, and each entry will have brief details about theme, pairing, and expected general timeline of posting. I will be updating this periodically as I release things/complete things/potentially get new ideas, and I’ll keep this post pinned to the top of the blog. Enjoy!

— horizons

— restitution in absentia - epic length, HBP divergence (or arguably very late OOTP divergence), mystery and angst, super-powered Ginny, morally gray Draco; currently WIP, anticipated completion date December 2024/January 2025

— where the sky meets the sea - multi-chaptered but significantly shorter than RiA; working summary of “In which Draco Malfoy goes to trauma therapy, as told by a trauma therapist. In which Ginny Weasley deals with the aftermath of accidentally temporarily becoming a god— oops. In which Draco and Ginny learn to love each other and lead fulfilling lives in a post-Voldemort world.” Will be posted in 2025.

— secret third thing with no title yet - crossover? multiverse? action and adventure? yes? anticipated for 2026

— this is me trying

— Mise en Place - one shot, EWE, summer fest fic, second chance relationship for Draco and Ginny in 2009, Draco in the Muggle world, divorced Ginny; completed

— Of Apples and The Trees They Fall From - planned 6 chapters, sequel, Ginny introducing Draco to her family, early days of navigating their new relationship; fall fest fic, WIP

— Vol Vers La Vie - planned 13 chapters, prequel, exploration of Draco’s life from Deathly Hallows until the events of Mise; will be released 2025

— all of this is temporary

— PTOLEMAEA - 11 chapters, dead dove, Ginny/Tom, Voldemort Wins AU, written for TWHoS Gothic Fantasy Fest; inspirations include Dante’s Inferno, Black Mirror, American Horror Story, Ethel Cain’s “Ptolemaea”, and Paris Paloma’s “escape pod”; completed

— PENANCE - multi-chaptered, D&G surviving in a Voldemort wins world, tied together by mutual common interests; do we live with horror or fight to change it?; will be released 2025

— PRODIGAL - multi-chaptered, D/G time travel fix it fic to save the world from a Voldemort empire; will be released 2025

— Stand Alones (Canon Compliant)

— The Mental Game - 250 word drabble, Ginny and Quidditch, could conceivably fit into RiA or Mise universes; completed

— aphelion - canon-compliant longfic; will explore D&G’s time at Hogwarts during DH, then will be post-war with Draco serving an Azkaban sentence; expect slow-burn enemies to lovers, anticipated for 2026

— Stand Alones (Alternate Universe)

— All the World’s a Stage - 2300 word DG one shot, Medieval AU, inspired by the movie Molière, written for the Audaciously Austen Quill Quest; completed

— Ginevra - an Anastasia (animated film) retelling but make it Drinny; probably multi-chaptered but short, sticks pretty closely to film plot; maybe 2025, maybe 2026 depending on how other projects go

[teethburied]

number one (a film from imdb top 250)… hit me

my real answer is come and see (1985) but i promised id take your tastes into account and i just snorted so loud at rush being on here so youre getting rush (2013)

send me a number and ill rec u a movie :3