#zardoz the vast

[mahodraws]

bruhhhh i need to start posting again, heres some chibi heads of me and my friends elden ring ocs + stinky varre : )

[saint-severian]

Japs, Jews, Aussies, an Anglo and an Italian: My favorite directors and my favorite of their films

Hayao Miyazaki

1. Princess Mononoke (1997), 2. Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind (1984), 3. Spirited Away (2001). If you don't like anime, that's okay, because neither does Miyazaki. Despite being one of the best-well known anime directors in the world, he famously said "anime was a mistake" in reference to where the genre has gone. I, at least, don't think his films were a mistake, quite the opposite. His work will endure as long as animated films are popular or discussed as some of the peaks of the medium. Although it's easy for this kind of thing not to be your thing (which is true for most of these directors), if you are interested in anime or have a child to whom you will allow exposure to animated films (foreign, no less), I recommend old man Miyazaki, a fascinating chsracter unto himself, or at least Princess Mononoke, especially for those inclined environmentally.

Akira Kurosawa

1. Seven Samurai (1954), 2. Yojimbo (1961), 3. Rashomon (1950), 4. Dreams (1990). If Hayao Miyazaki is the Hidetaka Miyazaki of anime, then Akira Kurosawa is undoubtedly the emperor of japanese cinema. Seven Samurai is long but worth it, as one of the best films ever made, and is notable particularly for its depiction of the vast difference between the character of the samurai warriors and the peasant farmers they swore to protect (these two along with their enemies, the bandits, fit nicely into an Evolian caste triad, if you're that autistic). Rashomon famously (re)introduced the concept of an unknowable situation, obscured forever by subjectivity and human corruption and desire. Dreams is a bit of a trip but fascinating in its aesthetic and dreamlike psychological exploration. Yojimbo is tragically much less well-known than the Western remake, a movie you might have heard of starring a certain scowling cowboy.

Sergio Leone

1. The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, (1966), 2. A Fistful of Dollars (1964), 3. For A Few Dollars More (1965). Akira Kurosawa gave life to the Western genre unwillingly in his depictions of the life of a drifting Ronin samurai in Yojimbo by inspiring the plot and main character of Leone's Fistful of Dollars, a tense and visually compelling film that spawned the Spaghetti Western genre and two "sequels" which in some ways surpass their origin. Like Seven Samurai, The Good, The Bad and The Ugly is very long and very well acclaimed. If nothing else, you should watch it for Ennio Morricone's score (you'll know it when you hear it).

John Milius

1. Conan the Barbarian (1982), 2. Apocalypse Now (1979), 3. The Wind and the Lion (1975). Milius, a spiritual successor to the hardness and masculinity of the former two directors, was famously unpopular in Hollywood for being a bit too unapologetically Ur. Conan (called by him a "pagan film") is the purest exemplar of this unadulterated muscularity of mind and body, though Dirty Harry, with its contemporary setting amd darker tone is much more effective and controversial. John Milius did not direct his best film, Francis Ford Coppola gets the honor of having put together Apocalypse Now, but it would be nothing without Milius's writing. Here's a tip: watch the extended version. It's worth it.

Stanley Kubrick

1. A Clockwork Orange (1971), 2. Barry Lyndon (1975), 3. The Shining (1980), 4. Eyes Wide Shut (1999), 5. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968). Enough people on the internet talk about Kubrick, its very easy to find analyses on the man, his work and its influence (I recommend Collative Learning on YouTube). I'll mention Barry Lyndon because its unreservedly less well-known. Although it is slow (even for Kubrick), it's a beautiful and somewhat offputting portrayal of 18th century Europe.

Roman Polanski

1. Chinatown (1974), 2. The Ninth Gate (1999). Chinatown always reminds me of Rango (2011) by Gore Verbinski, who also directed Pirates of the Caribbean (the first of which is one of the best adventure films). Tbh, an underrated director, unlike Polanski, who gets his due. I haven't seen enough of his work to say anything complex about him, but certain sources have also recommended the Tenant (the same source has also recommended David Lynch, particularly Mulholland Drive).

George Miller

1. The Road Warrior (1981), 2. Mad Max (1979), 3. Mad Max: Fury Road (2015), 4. Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome (1985). Not much to say here: Mad Max speaks for itself.

John Boorman

1. Excalibur (1987), 2. Zardoz (1974). These films are filled with themes that lie at the heart of the Right, particularly Excalibur, an absolute triumph of a film, while Zardoz is a somewhat more Nietzschean and surreal science fiction experience, it is nonetheless well worth watching.

Peter Jackson

1. The Return of the King (2003), 2. The Fellowship of the Ring (2001), 3. The Two Towers (2002). You know I had to do it to em. These movies are popular for good reason. If you're interested, look up the esoteric analysis by a Hindu priest. Needless to say Tolkien understood the decline of our world.

Peter Weir

1. Master and Commander (2003), 2. Dead Poets Society (1989), 3. Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975), 4. Gallipolli (1981), 5. The Year of Living Dangerously (1982). Peter Weir is perhaps the most European director. In their themes, characters and settings, something is deeply European about his films - or at least deeply Anglo. They are enduring - thematically, visually, and in their characters. Although The Year of Dangerously and Gallipolli are vastly different films, Mel Gibson proves himself relatable and inspiring in both (as always). Picnic at Hanging Rock is a bit obscure, understandably, as a film which is very difficult to characterize except to say that it is simultaneously sexy and perverse, mysterious and simplistic. It is unsettlingly dark and yet blazed in the light of the Australian day. Somewhat reminiscent of The Lord of Flies. Dead Poets Society, its much more popular, much less outwardly depressed younger brother is one of very few films almost exclusively about male groups. In its story, culture, and aesthetic, Dead Poets seems, like many of Weir's films, like a vanished world, one close to home but just out of reach. As for Master and Commander, it continues on the trend of outward lightness and optimism with a dark underbelly, not unlike all of Anglo civilization. I've seen it four times, and every time it gets better.

Honorable Mentions films:

They Live (1988)

Akira (1988)

Alice (1988)

[flyoverkushtaka]

Big bro, I was just in the shower, letting the hot water ease up the tension in my body after working and working out, and I started thinking about all the ways you make me horny, about how my mind swims through the eddies and currents and waterspouts of your stupendously vast intellect that would swallow me whole were I a lesser beast, how I’d happily and joyously serve with any other lil bros you’d perchance to collar alongside me, all of us worshipping you with the zeal and lust of a pack of hooting hooligans, like that opening scene of Zardoz but even sexier.

I’d do anything for you because it’s right, it’s just, it’s beautiful, and it’s woven into the infinitely intricate pattern of nature, like the helix-chains of DNA or the spirit-spirals of an ancient river’s wise-wending path.

[aion-rsa]

The Closest Sean Connery Ever Came To Playing Sherlock Holmes

https://ift.tt/3oV5dtt

In the course of his nearly 50-year career on the screen, the late Sean Connery portrayed many famous characters, both fictional and non-fictional. Among those were, of course, Ian Fleming’s suave spy James Bond in seven films; Daniel Druvot in 1975’s The Man Who Would Be King; King Arthur in 1995’s First Knight, Robin Hood in 1976’s Robin and Marian; Dr. Henry Jones Sr. in 1989’s Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, and many more.

One role Connery never got to play was Arthur Conan Doyle’s legendary detective, Sherlock Holmes. But he did come close, playing a character who was based at least in part on Holmes, in the 1986 movie The Name of the Rose.

Based on the best-selling 1980 novel by Italian historian, philosopher and author Umberto Eco, the book and the film are set in 1327, as a Franciscan monk named William of Baskerville (Connery) and his young novice Adso of Melk (Christian Slater) travel to a remote abbey in northern Italy that’s home to an order of Benedictine monks, ostensibly for a high-stakes debate between the Franciscan order and emissaries of the Vatican over the poverty of Christ.

Once there, however, William is asked by the abbot (Michael Lonsdale, a Bond villain in 1979’s Moonraker) to help solve the mysterious death of a young monk. William, whose vast intellect is piqued by mysteries, is at first hesitant, as previous investigations have led him into direct conflict with the then-powerful Inquisition. But as more monks die, with the deaths apparently connected to a forbidden book of which no copies allegedly exist, William is drawn deeper into the puzzle and once again must eventually face the Inquisition in the form of the fanatical Bernardo Gui (F. Murray Abraham, in his first role since winning the Best Actor Oscar two years earlier for Amadeus).

Directed by Jean-Jacques Annaud (Quest for Fire) and starring an international cast that also included William Hickey (Moonstruck), Ron Perlman (Hellboy) and others, The Name of the Rose was and is a truly unique story and film: it is a detective story set in a medieval monastery, with a lead character inspired by both Sherlock Holmes (the “Baskerville” is a nod to Doyle’s The Hound of the Baskervilles) and the real-life 14th century Franciscan philosopher and theologian William of Ockham.

Shooting in Italy and Germany, Annaud was reportedly obsessed with getting the period details correct, right down to the illuminated manuscripts that are such an integral part of the plot. The film is certainly unlike any detective story one might have seen previously: the abbey is a forbidding, dank, oppressive place, while the monks almost to a man appear unhealthy, decrepit or deranged. It feels like the 1300s. Grisly killings, torture and — of all things — an explicit sex scene are all part of the proceedings.

Yet at the same time, The Name of the Rose is a dense work — almost too dense in some places — that features labyrinths both literal and metaphorical as well as rich thematic conversations on the nature of love, the existence of God, the power of laughter and, ultimately, whether knowledge is dangerous and should be repressed lest it weaken one’s faith in the Almighty.

The movie was the last of what one might call Connery’s “wilderness years,” before his Oscar-winning 1987 turn in The Untouchables put him back on Hollywood’s A-list. Following his final official appearance as Bond in 1971’s Diamonds are Forever, the Scottish actor embarked on a 15-year stretch of 20 films that featured both hits and misfires. Among his movies during this period were the well-regarded crime drama The Offence (1972), the deliriously loopy sci-fi epic Zardoz (1974), the desert war film The Wind and the Lion (1975), the adventure The Man Who Would Be King (1975), the spacebound High Noon reimagining Outland (1981), an unofficial Bond return in Never Say Never Again (1983) and the cult fantasy classic Highlander (1986).

Read more

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It’s safe to say, however, that Connery’s career throughout this period did not reach the same heights of success that it did during his years as Bond. Columbia Pictures even pulled its backing from The Name of the Rose because the studio didn’t think the actor was a draw at that point, and Annaud reportedly did not at first want to hire James Bond to play the more intellectually-minded and philosophical William.

Annaud was eventually won over, and as screenwriter Andrew Birkin recently recalled while paying tribute to Connery in The Hollywood Reporter, the actor requested changes to the script to make William of Baskerville even more introspective than envisioned. Birkin said that Connery “brought pensiveness and thoughtfulness to the part. Things he wasn’t able to play in Bond. Bond is a man of action. Here, Sean played a man of words.”

Not surprisingly, Connery is magnificent in the role. His William of Baskerville is an empathetic, quick-witted, marvelously intelligent pursuer of knowledge and truth, quite willing to buck the conventional dogma of the Church at the time — at least privately. He is fatherly and compassionate to his novice Adso, especially when the latter inadvertently experiences his first stirrings of love for a woman (which, William points out amusingly, presents “certain problems” for a monk).

20th Century Fox

William is also a flawed character: as we learn, his intellectual pride in the past led to accusations of heresy against him and a man he was charged to protect, with William thrown into prison for several years and the man consigned to being burned at the stake. Reluctant at first to solve the murders at the abbey, he ultimately stands up for the truth once again, putting himself in grave danger.

It’s a complex performance in a complicated, dark but challenging film, and what’s strange is that even though Connery won a BAFTA Award for Best Actor (the British equivalent of an Oscar), The Name of the Rose is extremely difficult to see today.

cnx.cmd.push(function() { cnx({ playerId: "106e33c0-3911-473c-b599-b1426db57530", }).render("0270c398a82f44f49c23c16122516796"); });

The movie failed in North America, grossing just $7.6 million, but did better in Europe, earning around $77 million internationally. Yet it is not streaming on Amazon or Netflix, hasn’t been released on Blu-ray in North America and is out of print on DVD. You might have better luck if you have an all-region player, although the quality of the DVD and Blu-ray editions released internationally might be sketchy (we love the movie, and all we have is a crappy Italian DVD from some years back).

If you can catch it, it’s worth the time: The Name of the Rose not only features what we think is one of Connery’s best performances, but it’s a riveting historical/philosophical mystery on its own terms even if it condenses much of the esoteric musings that made Eco’s book a favorite with readers around the world. As for why this excellent movie did not take off at the time of its release and is not easy to see or remember today, that’s an enigma that even Sherlock Holmes might have trouble solving.

The post The Closest Sean Connery Ever Came To Playing Sherlock Holmes appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/35ZWn5l

[queeranarchism]

Statement by business people and shop owners of the Hamburg district Schanzenviertel,

We, some business people and shop owners of the Hamburg district Schanzenviertel, in view of the reports and the public discourse are compelled to describe our view of the riots over the course of the G20 summit.

In the night of 7 July to 8 July 2017 a crowd raged for hours in the street, looted some shops, in many others the windows were broken, burning barricades were erected and clashes with the police happened.

It is difficult for us to recognize the articulation of a political conviction in this senseless the destruction, much less the idea of ​​a new, better world. We watched the events slightly frightened and skeptical on the ground and from our windows in the streets of our neighborhood.

But the complexity of the dynamics that happened here this night is not adequately reflected in the media, by the police, or in public discourse. Yes, we saw directly how windows were broken, parking meters were torn out, ATMs thrashed, road signs broken off and the pavement torn open. But we also saw how many days in a row every minor thing caused the completely disproportionate use of water cannons. How people were pushed without reason by uniformed and helmeted officials or even beaten off their bike. For days. This must not be swept under the carpet when considering what happened.

The highlight of this debate is a “black block” that in the night of Friday and Saturday is supposed to have raged in our neighborhood. Our own observations do not confirm this, the damages lamented by the press and that happened outside of direct confrontation with the police are only in small part due to these people.

The vast majority were young people looking for entertainment as well as voyeurs and party people, whom we would rather find on the beat, a football match or Bushido concert than on a left-radical demo. There were drunken young men whom we saw on the scaffolding and who were throwing bottles - treating this as a planned “ambush��� and a menace to the life and limb of the civil servants is incomprehensible to us.

It was mainly these people who, after the windows had been broken, went into the shops and returned with stolen goods. Who in an act of sporting self-exaggeration and with a naked torso threw water bottles from a distance of 50 meters at other people, while bystanders with beer in their hands were egging them on and making cell phone videos.

It was rather the mixture of anger at the police, disinhibition caused by alcohol, the frustration of one’s own existence, and the greed for a spectacle that was the cause. This was not a left-wing protest against the G20 summit. To speak of leftist activists would be reductive and wrong.

In addition to all the violence and destruction on that day, we have seen many situations where apparently well-organized, black-dressed and masked people have been working together with local residents to stop others from attacking small, owner-managed stores. Who took the iron bars out of other people’s hands, who helped neighbors secure their bicycles and who prevented the senseless throwing of bottles. They also extinguished a fire when, in the devastated and plundered “Flying Tiger Copenhagen,” youths were trying to set a fire with a flare even though the house is inhabited.

It is not up to us to determine what has gone wrong here, which action led to what reaction. What we can say, however, is that we live and work here, and for many weeks we have been witnessing how the “showcase of modern police work” is creating a climate of impotence, fear and resultant anger. The fact that this comprehensible anger was now indiscriminately, blindly and bluntly articulated this way, we regret very much. It still leaves us completely shaken today.

Nevertheless, we see the origin of this anger in the failed politics of the Red-Green Senate, who wants to bask in the flashing lights of the international press, but has been totally incompetent and has let a highly militarized police completely manage this major event on all levels. This Senate has issued a “Carte Blanche” to the police - but that the problems, questions and social implications arising in the context of such a summit in the midst of a city of millions can not only be answered with police tactics and repressive means seems to have been lost in the drunken staggering of a quasi-monarchic staging of power and glamor. That this would not fly could have been foreseen with a minimum of political vision.

We agree when Olaf Scholz now speaks of an unacceptable “brutalization”, which we “all have to face”. But it must not be forgotten that this brutalization is also the consequence of a society in which any deviating political expression is criminalized and combated by the police with special laws and militarized units.

But in spite of all the shocking events of the weekend it must also be said: The pictures going around the world are indeed apocalyptic, dark, and sooty. But we were far away from the reality of a civil war. Instead of continuing to increase hysteria, pondering and reflection should now become part of the discussion. The street still exists, on Monday most of the shops opened as before, the damage to persons is limited.

We were more afraid of the armed special units aiming machine guns at our neighbors than of the alcoholic hooligans that let off steam here yesterday. They are stupid, annoying, and are breaking windows, but in case of doubt they will not shoot you.

For most of us shop owners, the far greater damage has been caused by the exodus of our customers, who were fed up with the many interventions and restrictions caused by the summit. And by our suppliers who have not been able to supply us since last Tuesday, due to the absence of our guests. The associated sales losses will hurt us for a long time to come.

For many years we have been living in a peaceful, often amicable and solidary neighborhood with all kinds of protest, of which the Red Flora is a non-negotiable part. This weekend won’t change that in the slightest.

Knowing that this superfluous spectacle is now over, we hope that the police enters a moderate relationship with democracy and the people living in it, that after weeks and months of hysteria and restrictions we can get some rest and tackle our everyday life with all the big and small contradictions together again.

Business people from the Schanzenviertel: BISTRO CARMAGNOLE CANTINA POPULAR DIE DRUCKEREI - SPIELZEUGLADEN SCHANZENVIERTEL ZARDOZ SCHALLPLATTEN EIS SCHMIDT JIM BURRITO’S TIP TOP KIOSK JEWELBERRY SPIELPLATZ BASCHU e.V. MONO CONCEPT STORE BLUME 1000 & EINE ART JUNGBLUTH PIERCING & TATTOO SCHMITT FOXY FOOD BUCHHANDLUNG IM SCHANZENVIERTEL WEIN & BOULES

Original statement in German: https://www.facebook.com/BistroCarmagnole/posts/1451018668300206 Translation in Dutch: https://globalinfo.nl/Nieuws/verklaring-van-bedrijven-in-schanzenviertel-over-de-g20-rellen

[thatswaterdeep]

Nimblewright Hunting

The session began with an official naming of the infamous Inn: “The Brewding Specter”.

After much scheduling and discussion, the party decided to officially open the bar on the 15th of Marpenoth, bring Mirt on as an investor, and advertise by hiring a horse to pull around a rickshaw in Waterdeep.

Later, the party all piled into the rickshaw and took off across the city, offering free drink samples and scanning with the Nimblewright Detector. Much sooner than expected, the Detector starts picking up a signal!

After narrowing it down, the party found themselves outside a compound on a nice road with a gate. It seemed to be a fancier establishment. A few less-than-subtle attempts to check out what’s going on inside, we leave Sychor hidden in some bushes to keep an eye on the place, and decide to come back under the cover of night.

Nothing happens in front of the compound all day, but when darkness arrived Yathome picked the gate lock and the party was in! As they explored the small courtyard, arguing over which door to use to enter, the Nimblewright Detector continues to go click and turn. Suddenly, however, the party was attacked by what appeared to be three shadows that surrounded the front door!

They prove to be easy enough to ultimately dispatch, but had an unpleasant effect of sapping the strength of those they touched.

With the shadows taken care of, the party picked a door and peeked inside. They were greeted by a gritty and shocking scene of dead bodies strewn across the whole floor and two men standing over them, all bloodied. With a surprise round, the party jumped the two men, taking them out before they had a chance to really react. After some investigation, they turned out to be Zhentarim agents! (Note: Ask questions first, then kill)

More sounds of a struggle could be heard upstairs with the clanging of swords and tussling, so the party immediately ran up the stairs to discover and fight and more Zhentarim agents who were attempting to murder/kidnap the owners of the house.

After things settled down and the fight seemingly over, the party took the time to question the lady of the house about the Nimblewright the party was tracking. She didn’t have much to say, except to reveal that they were the Gralhund family. However the man of the house, who seemed to be more open to answering the questions, admitted that the Gralhunds had bankrolled the kidnapping attempt of Renaer (who we rescued in the first session) in an attempt to get the Stone of Golorr which is supposed to be able to locate a hidden stash of half a million dragons somewhere in Waterdeep. The family was attacked in retaliation because his wife had tried to hurry along the plot by giving a Necklace of Fireballs to her Nimblewright and accidentally killed some Zhent agents in the process.

Throughout the questioning, Kava noticed a quite dashing Half-Orc bodyguard hired by the Gralhunds, and promptly made a friend. But the party quickly realized that their welcome in the house was just about out. So, they took their leave and, again, left Sychor behind to gather any more information he could obtain.

The last thing the party realized, a little too late unfortunately, was the presence of a teleportation circle in the house. The Nimblewright Detector had been signaling the presence of a Nimblewright very steadily, but then suddenly stopped. All signs pointed to it being teleported to undisclosed location.

The party informed their various affiliations about what they had learned of the Gralhund family. Most of the organizations had heard rumors of the Gralhunds being involved, but not to this extent.

The party began their search anew the next morning and, this time, ended up in the shady Dock Ward. Two separate signals were coming from two ships in the harbor, the Hellraiser and the Heartbreaker.

Pon and Q went onto the Hellraiser and questioned the captain for several minutes. After not having a convincing backstory and stumbling over their words, they failed to convince anyone of their authority, but did get an invite to dinner!

Waiting for evening, half the party stayed to stakeout the boats, while the other half went to chat with Mirt. Meanwhile, Kava received a telepathic message that revealed that there was a young bronze dragon in Deepwater Harbor. The Grey Hand wanted Kava to see what the dragon wanted and what its purpose was. It had not hurt anyone or bothered a soul, so far. The Grey Hand gave the party potions of water breathing to help make the trek a little more manageable.

Meanwhile, in the Yawning Portal, Mirt shares a few details and is surprised by the details of the Gralhund family. He tells the party that the Stone of Golorr is a key to a secret vault of vast treasure! It was in the possession of a gnome, the one who died outside The Brewding Specter in the explosion a few days prior.

Mirt also revealed that the ships the party had eyes on belonged to the Sea Maidens Faire, which uses Nimblewrights for many tasks, so the party was probably not on the trail of the Nim they were after. However, Mirt encourages us to go to the dinner as it could not only be entertaining, but shed some light on certain aspects of Nimblewrights or other problems surrounding Waterdeep.

During this time, a rat scurries up to talk to Yathome and tells him that there’s a necromancer stealing bones from the cemetery in the City of the Dead. One Sir Ambrose Everdawn is already on the case, but needs a little bit of muscle.

First things first though, grub! The party gets transported to a ship in the harbor called the Eyecatcher and are greeted by Zardoz Zord, who’s just THE BEST.

He tells the party all about the Sea Maidens Faire, a parade of family entertainment, while the party chows down a dinner served by Nimblewrights. We ask about his automatons and he explains that they’re obedient and has never seen one “think for itself”. It’s a delicious dinner. After much drinking and laughter, the party finds themselves heading back the bar at nightfall.

Back at the Brewding Specter, a flying snake appears with another message. It was a note for Sychor that had new handwriting on it. There have been some changes in the Zhentarim organization due to what happened at the Gralhunds as well as how the city is cracking down on their activities. The note says that one of Waterdeep’s richest families, the Snowbeedles, is offering 500 gp for info on a missing person, called Dasher.

The next morning, the newspaper is full of stories about the bloodbath at the Gralhund manor. Most say that the Zhentarim wanted to rob the family. As such, Starsong, Sychor’s contact in the Zhentarim, got arrested.

As if the party didn’t have enough to keep them occupied, there was another flying snake! This time, the note says “I want to know what happened at the manor” signed Astrid Horn. She requested Sychor meet her at high noon the next day.

The party went to City of the Dead to look into the necromancer business, but the Nimblewright Detector went off on their way there! They found a figure hunched over in the garbage in an alley. After several attempts to talk to it or wake it up, the Nimblewright jumped up and prepared for combat.

After and loud and raucous engagement, Sychor eventually found an opening in the Nimblewright’s metal and dropped him. A passerby noticed the commotion and ran to grab the city guard. Not having much time before the guards arrived, the party wrapped up the limp Nimblewright and brought it to their cart. On the way back to the Temple, Sychor searched the Nimblewright and found a map in its pocket to Fenerus Stormcastle. It was marked in the middle of the Trades Ward.

The party arrives back at the Temple with the Nimblewright literally wrapped up for them. The priests are very grateful that this was solved with minimal distraction, giving the 500 gp.

The party was also given specific gifts.

Adjustable Stilts 2-5 ft, one minute to put on. One foot long

Backpack parachute. Reaction to use, 10 ft cube. Must be falling more than 60 ft. 10 minutes to repack.

Barking box. 6 inch. One action to wind. 8 hours. Barks if it feels vibration on the ground

Matchless pipe. (Sychor takes this)

Afterwards, the party got back on track and went to City of the Dead to see Sir Everdawn. As it turns out, he had no idea the party was coming, let alone sent to help. Awkward. It seems the Emerald Enclave sent the party without telling Everdawn. Q, however, soothes Everdawn’s hurt feelings and convinces him to let the party stay. Everyone patrols the southern half of the cemetery on the first night for any sign of necromancy.

Night falls with no sign of a necromancer of any sort. Slightly disappointed, the party returns home to the Specter for some much needed sleep.

The party continued to make contact with the ghost in the Spector by writing on a steamed up mirror. The ghost reveals that it’s name is Lif.

Tossa and Kava play with the “gun” that they found that night. They made it “click”.

The next day at high noon, Sychor goes to meet the Zhentarim agent, Astrid. He takes Kava as muscle and waits at the robed wizard statue. A female dwarf approaches slowly. Quickly, Sychor admits to knowing what happened at the house of Gralhund because he was “in the area”. He also told Astrid about the Stone of Golorr.

After much surprise, Astrid wanted to be hidden from the law by the party! For just a chance to talk, she’d give the party 10 plat. Money talks when it comes to Sychor and it seemed to be a good deal. So, the party agrees after discussing their terms with the dwarf. She plans to stay for a ten-day and lives in the basement that Pon recently vacated. (What was she hiding from????) (Are we going to tell Mirt???)

Night two arrives and the party goes back to the cemetery. Again, nothing happens.

Ongoing quests Open the bar! The party has enough money now. Continued relations with Lif, the ghost Find Dasher Snowbeedles (Zhentarim) Astrid in the basement (Zhentarim) Find the necromancer in the cemetery (Emerald Enclave) Meet with bronze dragon in the harbor (Grey Hands)

[stanchez-summer-sizzle]

Prompts List One

And it’s here, the first set of prompts! 

Dishes:

Fajitas— Alternate Universes; It’s a vast multiverse out there with plenty of other Ricks who have their own Stans. From Miami Rick to Robot Rick to that Rick that either lives in the world of “Zardoz” or just dresses as Sean Connery’s character for whatever reason, there are plenty of other Ricks to explore.

Ribs— Monsters; Gravity Falls is full of them. Werewolves, vampires, mythological creatures like merfolk or selkies, and actual dream demons.

Chicken— Pasts catching up; Hey, both of these guys have been through some things. Sometimes issues come back years later.

Hot Dogs— Illegal Activities; Sure it’s only illegal if you get caught, but these two aren’t always on the up and up. Whether it’s drug use, theft, breaking into government facilities, or pug smuggling both Stan and Rick have rap sheets.

Shish Kabobs— Family; Both Stan and Rick come with their own family members to integrate. For better or for worse.

Steak— Music/Concert; We got a guy who used to be in a band and a guy who’s constantly singing little songs to himself.

Corn— Fears and Nightmares; As much as they both might like to deny it, these men have a lot of worries and things that scare them to the core.

Beans— Date Tag-along(s); Sometimes you don’t get to enjoy an evening like you wanted to. Sometimes someone(s) decide to crash your party.

Ice Cream— Ice Cream Date; Have you ever gone out with someone you really care about to get ice cream? It’s a great experience.

BYOB (Bring Your Own Beer)— Got your own, unrelated idea? Hell yeah!

-

Activities:

Vollyball Horseshoes Pool/Swimming Water balloons Lawn darts

[pangeanews]

“Avrei dovuto girare Il Signore degli Anelli, ho Excalibur sotto al tavolo”. Dialogo con John Boorman, il regista che è diventato eremita

L’ultimo film. La scenografia è il giardino della sua grande casa, in Irlanda. Il cast è costituito da alberi torreggianti. Il regista si trascina sul vialetto di ghiaia, si appoggia al bastone, titano tra i giganti. Poi rientra in casa, svanisce. Ha pensato molto alla morte, John Boorman, ultimamente. Amici morti, film dimenticati; successi, rimpianti. Ha compiuto da poco 87 anni, passa il tempo facendo vaste camminate nella natura, guardando il passato. “Sono stato molto fortunato. Certo, c’è sempre quella fastidiosa percezione… avrei potuto fare di più… A volte è questa idea che mi tiene sveglio, la notte”.

*

Il regista ha appena pubblicato un libro, Conclusions, per esorcizzare i propri fantasmi, per risolverli, forse. In parte è un libro di memorie, in parte un manuale di cinematografia. “Avrei dovuto intitolarlo Confusions”, dice, ridendo. Boorman abita a Glebe, una casa isolata tra le Wicklow Mountains. Sul tavolo: una pila di film e le pillole del giorno. Mi elenca rapidamente i suoi disturbi: perdita dell’udito, della vista… “La vecchiaia è una serie di rinunce. Non posso nuotare, non posso correre, non posso andare a cavallo o guidare una macchina. Faccio una passeggiata. Mi siedo su una panchina. Ritorno”.

*

Boorman è sempre stato severo con se stesso. Il suo libro è pieno di ricordi della Hollywood anni Sessanta e Settanta, quando incrociavi quotidianamente Marlon Brando, Billy Wilder, Akira Kurosawa. Boorman si fa notare nel 1967 con Senza un attimo di tregua, diventa una star dopo aver girato il prepotente Un tranquillo weekend di paura (1972). Dice di non avere avuto ambizioni: in un attimo è passato dai divani londinesi della BBC a una redditizia carriera da regista all’estero. Gli anni di Hollywood furono felici. In generale, tuttavia, Boorman ha preferito l’indipendenza: meno soldi, più libertà. Il suo lavoro, sempre, ha qualcosa di corrosivo, una specie di misticismo pagano. Film come Zardoz (1974), Excalibur (1981), La foresta di smeraldo (1985), sono ancora estremi, conturbanti. Li guardi con un senso di inquietudine, preoccupato della tua incolumità.

*

“Un tranquillo weekend di paura mi convince ancora, è fatto bene. Zardoz non so cosa sia. Eppure, credo di aver fatto sempre dei film audaci, nel bene o nel male”. Ci sono, poi, i successi mancati, come Rocky o Alien, rifiutati perché la sceneggiatura non lo ha soddisfatto. O i progetti abbandonati: “ho trascorso più tempo dietro ai film che non ho girato che a quelli che sono riuscito a girare”. All’inizio degli anni Settanta, ad esempio, avrebbe voluto realizzare un adattamento dal Signore degli Anelli. Pensava di riassumere il romanzo in un film di tre ore. “L’ho costruito come una grande storia distopica. Ho pensato tutto il film, l’ho disegnato, scena per scena, ho pensato a ogni possibile soluzione. Avrei scelto dei ragazzini di dieci anni per fare gli hobbit, truccandoli a dovere, è ovvio. Magari sarebbe venuto fuori un disastro. Magari no”.

*

Nel 1997, mentre gira The General, il film che racconta la storia del mafioso irlandese Martin Cahill, viene fermato da un medico. “Disse che sarei morto se non mi avessero immediatamente messo un bypass. Ero andato a farmi visitare per un controllo. Gli dissi che non se ne parlava neanche, che girare un film è più importante della vita e della morte”. La diagnosi, fortunatamente, si rivelò errata: John Boorman vincerà la Palma d’oro a Cannes per The General.

*

La Glebe è una antica canonica, costruita su un terreno che fu dei monaci. Il vicino di casa di Boorman è un contadino di 96 anni, che lavora ancora la terra. L’altro è Daniel Day-Lewis. “Si è ritirato dal cinema, si sentiva svuotato, depresso, ne ha avuto abbastanza, insomma”. Boorman abita qui dal 1969, questa casa è stata la base di ogni sua avventura. Una notte, Lee Marvin era ubriaco a un capo del tavolo; all’altro Sean Connery raccontava la sua infanzia derelitta in Scozia. Ora Boorman è solo: ha divorziato da due mogli, i figli abitano altrove. Attende con impazienza i visitatori, sospira quando vanno via. “Tanti amici sono morti, ho la sensazione di essere abbandonato. La mia generazione è quasi scomparsa. Devo solo accettare che le cose vanno così: una cosa dopo l’altra scompare. Sei solo. Infine, muori”. Crede di essere un eremita, e questo un po’ gli piace.

*

Quando gli chiedo quali siano le cose a cui è più affezionato, mi mostra la fusione in bronzo delle mani della figlia maggiore, Telsche, morta di un cancro alle ovaie vent’anni fa. Poi Excalibur. Me la mostra, è in un angolo della stanza, forgiata apposta per il film. La lama è pesante e luminosa. Chi non si è emozionato guardando l’epopea di Re Artù al cinema? Brandisco la spada, e mi sento l’eroe della mia fasulla epopea privata. “Quando giri un film, ti convinci che la morte non esiste. Sei così concentrato che tutti i pensieri sulla morte svaniscono”. Ora ama gli alberi, Boorman. Cerca di capire come possano comunicare tra loro. “Forse c’è una connessione tra i film e gli alberi. Quando giri un film, ne cerchi la verità fondamentale. Hai la sceneggiatura, gli attori, ma… dove stai andando? Il film cambia e solo fino a un certo punto puoi domarlo. Devi seguire il flusso. Lo stesso accade per gli alberi. Li pianti. Molti muoiono. Alcuni sono consumati dagli animali. Altri sopravvivono, diventando dei giganti”. Il regista continua a guardare gli alberi. “Ho comprato questa casa 50 anni fa. Ho visto la vita di tanti alberi. Molti di loro li ho piantati io, vivranno più a lungo di me”.

Xan Brooks

*Si traduce qui parte dell’intervista di Xan Brooks pubblicata su “Guardian” come: “John Boorman: You think the holy grail is lost? No. I have it on my piano”

**In copertina: Nigel Terry, che fu Re Artù nel film “Excalibur” di John Boorman

L'articolo “Avrei dovuto girare Il Signore degli Anelli, ho Excalibur sotto al tavolo”. Dialogo con John Boorman, il regista che è diventato eremita proviene da Pangea.

from pangea.news https://ift.tt/2UToGOF

[saint-severian]

With a little imagination we can see Zardoz not just as an abstract analogy for the present but as a rough analogue of a possible future:

As things accelerate toward their natural end, we can envision the distance between urban-liberal and rural-conservative becoming so vast as to be a conflict between civilized and barbarian. One couched in unsustainable luxury, false omnipotence, and the illusion of escape from Nature; the other forged by harsh selective pressures, increasingly cut off from security and comfort, increasingly independent, increasingly identifying the urbanite as enemy. 

With a little imagination, one can imagine such a purgation of the urban nest by the barbarian horde of “exterminators”. With a little imagination, one can imagine the world to come.

[aion-rsa]

Hulu New Releases: August 2020

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

If you were concerned about there being a content drought in August due to the coronavirus pandemic shutting down Hollywood, you were…absolutely right in those concerns.

For its new releases in August 2020, Hulu is following Apple, Disney, and even Peacock’s lead in taking things nice and slowly. The vast majority of the notable offerings here are of the library variety. Hulu adds classic movies like Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, Rain Man, and Top Gun on August 1. Those go along with the very much still-holds-up Casino Royale on August 31.

Hulu also has room for some interesting recent indie movies like Ordinary Love (Aug. 3) and Peanut Butter Falcon (Aug. 6). But when it comes to Hulu original content there’s not much going on. The unheralded Find Me in Paris debuts its third season on August 21. That is followed by original comedy The Binge on August 28. And that’s about it!

Perhaps this is the month to catch up on Chopped or House Hunters International.

Hulu New Releases – August 2020

August 1

Monchhichi: Complete Season 1B (Cartoon Network)

The Pier (El Embarcadero): Complete Seasons 1 & 2 (BetaFilm)

UniKitty: Complete Season 2B (Cartoon Network)

71 (2015)

3:10 to Yuma (2007)

A Good Woman (2006)

A Perfect Murder (1998)

Australia (2008)

The Brothers McMullen (1995)

Cats & Dogs (2001)

Child’s Play (1988)

City Slickers (1991)

City Slickers 2: The Legend of Curly’s Gold (1994)

Company Business (1991)

Death At A Funeral (2010)

Elena Undone (2010) 10th Anniversary!

Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994)

Free Fall (2013)

Gayby (2012)

Hellraiser (1987)

Hurricane Bianca (2016)

Just Charlie (2017)

The Last Stand (2013)

Legend Of The Guardians: The Owls Of Ga’Hoole (2010)

Margin Call (2011)

Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003)

My Best Friend’s Wedding (1997)

My Bloody Valentine (1981)

Pit Stop (2013)

Rain Man (1988)

Rustlers’ Rhapsody (1985)

Safe (2012)

The Saint (1997)

Sleeping with the Enemy (1991)

Sordid Lives (2000)

Spare Parts (2015)

Stanley & Iris (1990)

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)

Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1984)

Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989)

Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991)

Star Trek: Insurrection (1998)

Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979)

Stuck On You (2003)

Top Gun (1986)

Ultraviolet (2006)

Up in the Air (2009)

Were The World Mine (2008)

August 2 

Shark vs. Surfer: Special (National Geographic)

August 3

Dora and the Lost City of Gold (2019)

Ordinary Love (2019)

August 6

The Real Housewives of Orange County: Complete Season 14 (Bravo)

The Peanut Butter Falcon (2019)

Slay the Dragon (2020)

August 7 

The New York Times Presents: “This Is Dominic Fike: The Next Big Thing?”: New Episode (FX on Hulu)

August 10

Hard Night Falling (2019)

Lucky Day (2020)

August 11

Alive And Kicking (2016)

Monster’s Ball (2001)

August 12

Smile Down the Runway: Season 1, Episodes 1-12 (DUBBED) (Funimation)

August 14      

Bernie The Dolphin 2 (2019)

August 15      

A Crime to Remember: Complete Season 4 (ID)

Bake You Rich: Complete Season 1 (Food Network)

Caribbean Life: Complete Season 16 (HGTV)

Chopped: Complete Season 40 & 41 (Food Network)

Christina On The Coast: Complete Season 1 (HGTV)

Honeymoon Hunters: Complete Season 1 (Travel Channel)

House Hunters International: Complete Season 129 – 134 (HGTV)

Island Life: Complete Season 15 (HGTV)

Mediterranean Life: Complete Season 1 (HGTV)

Murder in Paradise: Complete Season 1 (ID)

Naked and Afraid Complete Seasons 9 & 10 (Discovery)

Property Brothers: Buying & Selling: Complete Season 6 (HGTV)

Say Yes to the Dress: Complete Season 17 (TLC)

Sword Art Online: Alicization: Complete Season 1 (DUBBED) (Aniplex)

Worst Bakers in America: Complete Season 1 (Food Network)

Worst Cooks in America: Complete Season 16 (Food Network)

August 16      

Behind You (2020)

August 18      

The Cup (2012)

August 20 

Daffodils (2020)

Unacknowledged (2017)

August 21 

Find Me In Paris: Complete Season 3 (Hulu Original)

August 22 

Love in the Time of Corona: Series Premiere (Freeform)

August 23 

Blindspot: Complete Season 5 (NBC)

August 24 

The Roads Not Taken (2020)

August 26 

Mom: Complete Season 7 (CBS)

August 28 

The Binge (2020) (Hulu Original)

August 31 

Casino Royale (2006)

Primal (2019)

Quantum of Solace (2008)

The Courier (2019) 

Leaving Hulu – August 2020

August 31

3:10 to Yuma (2007) 

The American President (1995) 

Assassination Tango (2003) 

Born to be Wild (2011) 

Casino (1995) 

Charlie Wilson’s War (2007) 

Charlotte’s Web (1973) 

Child’s Play (1988) 

Cliffhanger (1993) 

The Cookout (2004) 

Crooked Hearts (1991) 

Dave (1993) 

Dirty Dancing (1987) 

Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights (2004) 

Equilibrium (2002) 

Fair Game (2010) 

Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994) 

Fun in Acapulco (1963) 

Gorky Park (1983) 

Happily N’Ever After (2007) 

Happily N’Ever After 2 (2009) 

Hud (1963) 

Incident at Loch Ness (2004) 

Joyride (1997) 

Liar, Liar (1997) 

The Marine 3: Homefront (2013) 

Molly (1999) 

Moonstruck (1987) 

Rain Man (1988) 

Risky Business (1983) 

Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993) 

The Scout (1994) 

Sex Drive (2008) 

Shirley Valentine (1989) 

Starting Out in the Evening (2007) 

Top Gun (1986) 

Trade (2007) 

The Whistle Blower (1987) 

Wristcutters: A Love Story (2007) 

The X-Files (1998) 

Zardoz (1974)

The post Hulu New Releases: August 2020 appeared first on Den of Geek.

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