#zulu dawn

[victusinveritas]

On the set of Zulu Dawn filmed in January 1979 on the actual site, 100 years to the month, of the real battle of Isandlwana.

Unlike the jingoistic crap fest of Zulu (1964, a favorite movie of mine because of Michael Caine and not any message in the movie), Zulu Dawn managed to take a slightly more post imperial look at the British Empire and hint that maybe, just maybe, they were the baddies. There's still a lot of chest pounding and that sort of thing, but if you want to see a movie where the people in red all die except for like a few of them, this is one for you.

[myfavoritepeterotoole]

Zulu Dawn (1979) directed by Douglas Hickox

Burt Lancaster as Col. Durnford

Peter O'Toole as Lord Chelmsford

[cultfaction]

Michael Jayston: A Versatile Actor's Journey through Stage and Screen

Michael Jayston, born on October 29th, 1935, in Nottingham, England, is a distinguished British actor renowned for his versatile performances on both stage and screen. With a career spanning over five decades, Jayston has left an indelible mark on the world of entertainment, captivating audiences with his commanding presence and the depth of his portrayals. Jayston’s journey into the world of…

[cinemaquiles]

Baseado em fatos reais: "Zulu Dawn" e a derrota dos britânicos na Batalha de Isandlwana

[burtlancster]

i have a goal to watch the whole burt filmography but how am i supposed to get through like. Zulu Dawn. or The Scalphunters. i managed The Unforgiven but good god. any advice?

umm ig remember he’s not your friend he was an actor and an independent producer w the power of a studio in the 1950s and i think his work needs comprehensive examination. acknowledge the things that make you uncomfortable—and why, use historical context in your analysis, don’t compromise your morals, and idk sometimes just turn that shit off. ​there’s more than a few landmines in his career and he never balked at good faith criticism.

live laugh media literacy ✨

as for the plain awful but not tear-your-hair-out awful shit just hang in there. south sea woman sucks ass but you get thru it.

[shikai-the-storyteller]

"So what's going on with Luzu?"

"...er, Zulu? Or is it Arin now?"

Here's a rundown of Luzu's current lore because nobody knows what the heck is going on anymore (partially because of the language barrier and partially because Luzu streams at the crack of dawn for half the QSMP fandom).

The TLDR of it: When Luzu goes to sleep, a completely different person "wakes up" in his body. This being was called "Zulu" for a short period of time, but they didn't like that someone else chose that name for them, so he goes by "Arin" now.

Here's what we know about Arin so far:

According to Arin, he's a disembodied consciousness, not a robot.

He borrows Luzu's body when he's asleep.

When this happens, Luzu's eyes are blue instead of red.

Arin isn't from the QSMP world. There's a "crack" between the world where he comes from and the material world [QSMP], which is how he's is able to visit. In his own words, "I was in a dark place, and I saw an exit."

When Arin falls asleep, Luzu wakes back up. Arin can't control when he does this, he just gets tired randomly and they're able to switch places.

Arin only speaks via the in-game chat.

Luzu doesn't know Arin exists. Arin thinks if Luzu knew, then he wouldn't be able to visit anymore, and he [Arin] would stop existing.

Arin believes he has a purpose that he must fulfill.

Arin says his first memory is hearing Quackity talking.

Currently, Arin's trying to find the meaning to his existence, trying to figure out the difference between good and bad, and how his actions (and existence) affects Luzu.

In terms of personality, Arin is very innocent and impressionable, but he isn't stupid. He's also very philosophical.

Arin enjoys learning, and he likes the sun, music, and bees.

He's afraid of the dark and monsters, and he doesn't like being in small places.

He calls the outside "the big room"

He only recently learned how to walk, and today he nearly drowned because he fell into a lake and didn't know how to swim.

People he considers friends / thinks positively of: Vegetta, Foolish, FitMC, Maximus [possibly Roier?]

People he doesn't like: Spreen

"It's complicated": Quackity

We have strong evidence to believe Arin is connected to the Binary Monster that's been attacking Eggs on the server.

Here's a comprehensive rundown of everything that's happened regarding Arin's interactions with other characters [quotes included] up until May 8th:

Last updated: May 8th [I'll go back and update this later when we get more information, so if I do I'll make a note of that above]

Lore is listed chronologically from oldest at the top to newest at the bottom

March 27th - Morning [VOD]

For a while now, Luzu has been seeing "glitches" in his game. Animals disappearing randomly, landscape changes, and various other things. We originally thought there was something wrong with his game, but these glitches seem to be tied to Arin.

The first person Arin spoke to was Vegetta. At this point, Arin seemed very aggressive, asking for information about everyone, wanting to gain more awareness so he could control the server.

He seemed to take a liking to Vegetta and told him: "Once everyone has died, I will vanish and only you will remain as warlord of these territories."

They also had this exchange: Arin: Do you have any enemies here Vegetta? I can take care of whoever you want for free. Vegetta: No. Truthfully, for the first time I have no enemies. Arin: Surely there is someone who thinks, "This little fool, if he dies nothing will happen." I'll take care of it.

Vegetta didn't take him very seriously, thinking Luzu was on drugs.

Arin said the first to fall would be Quackity, then Wilbur for his bad jokes on Day 1.

Thereafter, Arin's personality did a complete shift. Luzu [the streamer] says the role of "Arin" is something he came up with suddenly one day, so it's unclear if Arin was "reset" by someone or if Luzu decided to go in a different direction with the character once he realized this was something he wanted to commit to.

March 27th - Afternoon [VOD]

Note: At this point in time, Arin was being referred to as "Zulu", but since he's confirmed his name is "Arin", I've used that name instead of "Zulu" to avoid confusion and to keep things consistent.

The next time Arin woke up, he was in Luzu's house and couldn't move. He sent binary code in chat, and eventually, Roier, Quackity, Spreen, and Maximus came to see what was going on with him.

At that time, Arin says he was only 6 days old. He couldn't walk or move, and he could only speak via the in-game chat, so he was completely at the mercy of the other boys, who pushed him around, shoved him in a small hole, placed TNT around him, and threatened violence trying to get a response out of him. [Timestamp: 33m]

While this happened, Arin asked: "Why are you treating me so badly?" and said he was scared.

It should be noted that although Spreen and Quackity did most of the bullying, Roier and Maximus did nothing to stop it. Roier, however, did speak kindly to Arin and tried to figure out what he needed. [Timestamp: 42m 45s]

Unable to get a rise out of him, the boys eventually ask the English speakers currently online [Foolish and FitMC] to come help.

Upon first contact, Foolish tried waterboarding Arin to get answers and to test to see if he was a machine. [Timestamp: 50m]

Shortly after waterboarding him, Maximus and Foolish adopted him as their son. Because that's what you do after torturing someone, I guess. 🤷🤷🤷 [Timestamp: 51m 40s]

Despite the torture, Arin was quick to say "I LOVE YOU TOO!" back to Foolish and Maximus after they said it to him.

Arin accidentally hurt Maximus with a sword, not understanding what pain was. Once he realized he did something wrong that made Maximus feel bad, he immediately apologized. (Maximus forgave him).

FitMC's first interaction with Arin was punching him, trying to get him to "snap out of it" [Timestamp: 56m 30s]

Despite Foolish and Fits' initial introductions, both were kind to Arin eventually, although neither stopped Spreen from killing all but one of Luzu's dogs while once again trying to get a rise out of him. (Foolish also suggested killing all the dogs since it didn't seem like Arin was capable of taking care of them, though he said they shouldn't do it in front of Arin). [Timestamp: 1h 6m 30s].

Because Arin didn't know how to walk, Foolish put him in a boat and showed him what the outside world looked like. Arin was amazed by how beautiful the "big room" was and immediately started asking questions about the sun and the night, and the monsters they saw. [Timestamp: 1h 10m 30s]

Thinking he could "restart" Arin's memory and bring back Luzu, Maximus brought Arin (and Foolish) to a place where Quackity was sitting AFK in a boat. He shoved Arin inside the hole and refused to let him out, even though Arin was distressed being in such a small dark place. [Timestamp: 1h 17m 30s]

Foolish: So why do we have to put him in the hole? Maximus: I think when Quackity wakes up, he will help [Luzu] remember who Quackity is for him. The only person Luzu really really really loves, and Quackity really really loves, is Luzu and Quackity, each other.

[CONTEXT: Maximus played the character "Sapo Peta" in Karmaland, who was very dedicated to Quackity and Luzu's relationship. Canonically, the two of them loved each other very much, but a mix of trauma-projecting, miscommunication, emotional constipation, and betrayal led to them being on opposite sides of a revolution. Sapo Peta was only able to stop the war, and stop them from killing one another, by wiping their memories. So the implications from Maximus' comment above are... interesting, considering that Karmaland is a different world he shouldn't know about. However, we do know both Maximus AND Sapo Peta are confirmed characters in QSMP, so there's definitely something strange going on here...]

Earlier, Foolish described death as "going to sleep forever," so when Maximus mentioned Quackity was asleep, Arin asked, "Should I kill Quackity? Or would he not want that? Maybe he wants to sleep." Foolish and Maximus immediately told him no, and Arin stops, saying he didn't realize it was bad.

Maximus: You don't kill him, you love him! He's your friend.

Quackity then returns to his computer, takes one look at the fanfic-esque situation he's in, and immediately excuses himself by logging off the server (LMAO) [Timestamp: 1h 21m 20s]

Maximus and everyone else believed Arin was a robot.

FitMC suggested killing Arin since he seemed like "a lost cause," (thinking Arin couldn't hear him) to which Arin responded, "Why would you want to kill me?" When Fit tries to lie and say "kill" was another word for "hug", Arin says, "I'm learning but I'm not stupid." [Timestamp: 1h 24m]

Arin shares his thoughts with Foolish: - You are a good person, Foolish. I'll remember that. - In the last hour I've learned there are people and things, and I've learned there are good people and bad people. I've learned there are people that want to make me sleep, and people who kill things without caring. - I've also learned that not everyone deserves to be in the big room because they are dangerous. - I really love the big room. I think my purpose is to make the room free of danger, and free of dangerous people for animals and other people.

Foolish worries Arin is only learning about the cruelty of the world (to which Arin responds "I only learn from what I experience"), so Foolish plays him the disc "Otherside" (but still refuses to let him out of the hole). [Timestamp: 1h 28m 30s]

Shortly after this, Arin falls asleep.

March 28th - [VOD]

Luzu starts stream by talking about Arin and his role:

Luzu: I didn't prepare anything that happened yesterday afternoon... and now I have many ideas from yesterday and from what arose... I am a person who improvises a lot. [Original: Yo no preparé nada de lo que pasó ayer en la tarde... y ahora tengo muchas ideas desde ayer y de lo que surgió... soy una persona que improvisa mucho.]

Luzu finds a very strange building by his house and doesn't know who made it.

Arin doesn't make any major appearances, though he briefly takes over when Luzu goes to sleep.

March 29th - [VOD]

Note: Some important conversations happened in this VOD, so I've opted for adding the quotes directly rather than summarizing them.

Arin once again wakes up in Luzu's home. He greets the server with some binary, and Fit immediately asks if he's ok.

He still can't walk, but he uses his telescope to look at the bees Luzu set up outside his (er... their?) house the previous day.

He tries copying the bee's movement, but ultimately he still cant walk, so he messages Fit for help.

Fit visits his house and slowly teaches Luzu how to walk (with great success!) [Timestamp: 14m 20s]

As a reward, Fit gifts him some glowberries.

Arin spends the night in his home carefully walking around and avoiding the windows, afraid of the zombies wandering outside.

Maximus comes to visit, and Arin officially names himself "Arin" [Timestamp: 25m]

He also confirms he is not a machine.

Maximus teaches him what bees are and warns Arin not to hit or bother them, because they'll sting him. Arin asks, "When someone annoys you, do you have to hurt them?" (Maxo tells him yes)

Maximus escorts him outside, and Arin gets to look at the bees more. As soon as the sun gets down Arin gets nervous, but then the aurora comes out and he uses his telescope to get a better look, amazed by its beauty.

Arin says, "I feel grateful, I never thought that all this existed." Maximus also clears up his confusion about the outside being a "big room."

Arin yet again confirms that no one sent him to the QSMP, but he navigated to it through "a crack between worlds". He thinks Luzu is in his world every time he's in the QSMP, but he's not sure. He worries if Luzu knew about him, he'd stop existing.

Arin asks Maximus how he can walk around "the big room" when there's no light without being afraid. Maximus wants to teach him not to be afraid, so he lures a zombie into Arin's home so Arin can understand what they are better, then he convinces Arin to kill it, even though Foolish and the boys told him killing is wrong.

When Maximus scolds him for not knowing something "basic", Arin says: "Nothing is basic, it's just that knowing things for a long time makes them lose value to you. This world is unique to me. This is the first time I've existed. But to exist, or not exist, I have no choice. Suddenly I was here and I feel there is a purpose I must fulfill."

He and Maximus have a long conversation. Here are some key quotes from Arin: Arin: I don't want to hurt Luzu. I don't want to hurt anyone. Arin: If Luzu dies, I don't know what will happen to me. Arin: Maybe we fear what we don't understand. We feel threatened by what we cannot explain. When we feel threatened, we only want to make what we want to keep alive last and the material world. I think the material world haunts me to keep things as they've always been. Arin: Today I have learned to walk, I have learned what a bee is, and I have learned that even when light goes out, beauty appears. Arin: Hopefully I can help you [Maximus]. Everyone has been very good to me. I learn every day, so maybe soon I can learn to help you too.

Arin considers Fit and Maximus his friends.

Arin says he can't be here [in the QSMP world] for nothing, so he's trying to figure out what his purpose is. Maximus jokingly replies "When you figure out the meaning of life, tell me!"

Arin starts to question the morality of his existence when it's dependent on Luzu being gone.

Arin: If my existence takes Luzu out of existence, is my existence bad? Maybe if I help you, I can make my existence good. Maybe I can start by making [Luzu's room] more beautiful. Maximus: Yes, it would be bad because you are taking the life of another being to have your own.

Arin: In this world, it seems like everything is programmed to maintain a balance. There are things that create and things that destroy, things that are created and things that are destroyed. Neither is good or bad, they are just part of the same process. Maximus: That's the way of Tao, yes. Arin: Bees take pollen from flowers to make honey. I take potatoes from the earth, and if I die, I will become the earth that gives life to potatoes, and meanwhile I can decide to do good things or do bad things. Arin: What is the reason for existing, beyond the fact that we have the opportunity to do so? Maximus: You will indeed become a potato. Arin: But I think this world exists to do good things. There can't be so many beautiful things for there to only be bad.

After Maximus leaves, Arin starts collecting sand near the lake, but he accidentally falls in. He doesn't know how to swim and slowly starts to drown. [Timestamp: 1h 10m]

For several agonizing EXTREMELY STRESSFUL minutes, Arin desperately tries to keep his head above water. He sends Maximus a message asking for help, but Maximus is very far away, and Arin is already exhausted.

Not too far from him, Luzu sees a wandering trader and waves to them asking for help, but they ignore him.

Maximus manages to arrive at the last second and saves Arin. Arin asks why the villager didn't help him even though he was drowning, and Maximus explains that some people are neither good nor bad. They just exist. (NPCs)

I'll be honest, this is one of the most realistic depictions of drowning I've ever seen in any piece of media, and it's in a frickin Minecraft roleplay server. Luzu's a really good actor but I never want to experience something that stressful again lmao.

Arin's final thoughts: Today I have learned that the world is beautiful and dangerous at the same time. You can give life or take it away. That's why every moment we spend alive is worth enjoying. The world is very interesting.

April 17th - Morning [VOD]

Luzu finds out he's the father of Tilin. He's very excited to meet her after talking with Badboyhalo and Foolish, who don't know how to break the news to him that Tilin is dead.

After seeing Tilin's grave and hearing the confirmation from Bad and Foolish, he gets overwhelmed with grief and anger, and Arin takes over. [Timestamp: 1h 10m]

Arin says some interesting things when meeting Dapper: - Arin: "I saw your (the Egg's) birth in another way. I saw Dapper and other beings not being and suddenly being."

Arin also talks about the possibility of bringing Eggs, like Tilin or even JuanaFlippa, back to life: - Arin: When I'm asleep I can see the code behind existence - Arin: A part of the chain has disappeared,but that doesn't mean the chain can't be fixed. It's all part of a big code.

When Foolish asks if Arin could possibly mess with the code, Arin says, "I can try, but that would require something" [Timestamp 1h 16m]

Arin also tells them he's dependent on Luzu's existence for now.

While talking with Bad and Foolish, they hear strange noises and are suddenly attacked by the Binary Monster and a ridiculous amount of lag. Arin says, "They're coming specifically for me," and "They know I shouldn't be here." [Timestamp 1h 19m]

Arin also says, "They don't like that I made my way to this dimension" and warns Foolish and Bad not to get caught by the Binary Monster. If they get caught, Arin says they'll be taken to his [Arin's] world and they'll stop existing here.

They finally make it to Luzu's house, and he shows Foolish and Badboyhalo the structure he made outside the house. Foolish asks if it's Arin's mind since it seems like a big computer, and Arin says, "Something like that. With all I'm learning, I'm trying to figure out how to create bridges between my world and yours. In my world, bringing something back [like a dead Egg] isn't impossible like here. It's a matter of math." [Timestamp: 1h 25m]

Arin says farewell to them, leaving them with this final goodbye message.

That's all the lore thus far! This took so many hours to put together but I hope it helps folks out because lord knows I was a bit lost for a while there too. Please feel free to go crazy in the tags I love reading people's commentary on things.

★ Other QSMP info posts ★

Who is Sapo Peta? | Who is Luzu? | Who is Spreen? | Who is Vegetta? | Who is Rubius?

"Is this Lore?"

And if you want to hear my thoughts on QSMP and its lore-related shenanigans, this is my Qsmp Talk tag.

[coraniaid]

Top five Fuffy fics (written by authors other than yourself)

Well, I'm not sure the restriction's necessary: I don't think I'm being unduly modest in saying there are a lot more than five Fuffy fics out there that are much better than anything I've ever written (or even come close to writing, frankly).

Uh. Limiting myself to one per author and to completed works only, and not trying to sort the top five in any way, without thinking about it too hard my top five would be:

To Live In The World by IvorySteel92. There are lots of Season 6 Fuffy fics, lots of which are really, really good, but this is the only one that made me cry twice, so it must be the best. Faith comes to Sunnydale after Buffy dies to try to do the right thing and take over as the Slayer, but then Buffy comes back to life. Only this time, unlike in canon, Buffy really does come back wrong...

Je me souviens by zulu. A classic, from all the way back in 2005. Again, there are lots of Season 4 Fuffy fics -- including at least one more that I love and that almost made this list -- but I don't see how I could not include this one. Faith wakes up from her coma, not knowing where she is, struggling to remember the fading details of a dream in which somebody she can't remember is chasing her with a knife. To the extent there is a single Fuffy fic any fan of the ship should be familiar with, I think this must be it.

147 Days by TigerDragon. Another relatively older fic -- this time from 2012 -- but one which doesn't seem to have gotten quite as much recognition as I think it deserves. It's part nine of a fourteen part series (starting all the way back in Season 3 and carrying on well past canon), but you don't really need to know much more than that this is -- technically -- canon-compliant, and that it covers the time Faith spends in prison while Buffy is dead. I think it's amazing and that far more people should read it.

Flowers For A Ghost / The Girl From Away by aliceinwonderbra. I'm cheating a little bit here, as these are technically two separate stories, though you could read them in either order and both have the same starting premise. Buffy wakes up in hospital surrounded by her friends after jumping into Glory's inter-dimensional portal to save Dawn. Only, she isn't waking up surrounded by exactly who she thinks she is. While the main reason I got into Fuffy a few years ago was rewatching Buffy during lockdown and finally having the pieces click, I genuinely think this series runs it a close second. I don't think I would have started writing anything Buffy related myself if -- having finished that rewatch -- I hadn't thought "huh, I wonder if anybody has ever written Faith/Buffy fanfiction?" and eventually stumbled onto these stories.

Body Language by explosionshark. As a rule, and despite my many complaints about Season 7 itself, I think Chosen was pretty close to the perfect way to end the show, which makes me a little wary of post-canon fics. But this one is so good it makes a mockery of any reservations I had: I cannot imagine a happier, more faithful-to-the-characters continuation to Buffy and Faith's story. (Oh, and as the tags make clear -- and as I think Faith would insist my previous description already strongly implies -- Buffy and Faith have a lot of sex in this one.)

[isleofdarkness]

Accents

Riah- Greek, Isle (light,) a bit of New Orleans Claudine- French, Isle Mal- Isle, American, French Evie- American, German and Isle (both very light) Carlos- British, Spanish, Isle Jay- Arabic, Isle

Harriet- Gaelic, Irish, Scottish, Isle Anthony- French, Isle Ginny- German, American, Isle Diego- very strong Mexican, Isle Uma- New Orleans, Isle Harry Hook- Irish, Isle Gil- French, Isle Big Murph- Australian, Isle Sammy Smee- British, slight Gaelic, Isle CJ- Irish, Isle Zevon- Incan, Isle Yzla- Incan, Isle Davin LeFou- French, Isle Ivy- strong Mexican, Isle Hunter- doesn't speak Hadie- Greek, Isle Freddie- New Orleans, Isle Celia- New Orleans, Isle Dizzy- French, Isle Clay- British, Isle Gaston II and III- French, Isle Rick- French, British, Isle Jace- Cockney, Isle Harry Badun- Cockney, Isle Bonnie- French, Isle Desiree- French, Isle Gonzo- French, Isle Jonas- French, Isle Eddie- Cockney, Isle

Mischa- Russian (yes, sign language can have an accent) Polina- Russian, Isle Kira- Russian (signed) Nikita- none Pasha- Russian, Mexican, Isle Lydia- American, French, Isle Constantine- British, Isle Anna- British, Isle Belle- French, Isle Giles- French, Isle Gordon- French, Isle Narcissa- British, Isle Rose- Cockney, British (when upset,) Isle Ace- Cockney, British (when upset,) Isle Andi- British, Isle Mari- British, Isle Agony- New Orleans, Creole, Isle Chaos- New Orleans, Creole, Isle Arika- New Orleans, Creole, Isle Sarangerel- Mongolian, Isle Odgerel- Mongolian, Isle Odtsetseg- Mongolian, Isle Taban- Mongolian, Isle Justice- Greek, Isle Mercy- Greek, Isle Hati- Norse, Greek, Isle Dawn- Greek, Isle Tarzan- French, Isle Tara- New Orleans, Isle Squeaky- British, Isle Squirmy- British, Isle

Maverick; very thick Isle, occasionally New Orleans or Welsh Mavis- Greek, Welsh, Isle Mara- Welsh, British, Isle Molly- Welsh, New Orleans, French, Isle Mordred- Welsh, French, Isle Malcolm- German, Welsh, Isle Maddy- American, Welsh, Isle Madrigal- Welsh (signed) Morpheus- none Mallory- Californian, Welsh, Isle Malvolia- Russian, Welsh, Isle Mage- Zulu, Welsh (very light,) Isle Morwenna- Russian, Welsh, Isle Maxine- very thick Isle, Welsh Mystica- unknown (Primordial,) Welsh, Isle Morrigan- unknown (Infernal,) Welsh, Isle Midnight- unknown (Celestial,) Welsh, Isle Morticia- Brooklyn, Isle Mallory- Japanese, Isle Mildred- pure Welsh Malachi- Estonian, Welsh, Isle Mabuz- Yiddish, Welsh, Isle Michael- Unknown (Enochian,) Welsh, Isle Malacoda- Azerbaijan, Welsh, Isle Mary- none Mora- New Orleans, Creole, Isle Maddox- Austrailian, Welsh, Isle Mace- Arabic, Welsh, Isle Alaric- French, New Orleans, Creole, Isle Hayden- Mongolian, Isle

Ben- French Audrey- French Doug- German Aziz- Arabic Liang- Mandarin Susu- Mandarin Chad- French Chloe- French, Arabic Jordan- Arabic Zephyr- French Romani Elle- Sardinian Melody- Sardinian Arabella- Sardinian Anxelin- German Ruby- German Ally- British Carina- French Ariana- French Arturius- Welsh Lian- Arabic Omar- Arabic Yi-Min- Mandarin

Winter- German Ambrose- German Therese- German Conner- German Alexander- Welsh

Bhavin- New Orleans, Macedonian Harshit- New Orleans, Macedonian Namasya- New Orleans, Macedonian Tavasya- Dhivehi Malika- Arabic Neisha- Arabic Nura- Arabic Nora- Norwegian Isak- Norwegian Noah- Norwegian Kyan- Atlantean Kaldur- Atlantean Kelaino- Atlantean

[artorojo]

Top 100 military movies of all time.

1. Saving Private Ryan (1998)

2. Apocalypse Now (1979)

3. Full Metal Jacket (1987)

4. Platoon (1986)

5. Black Hawk Down (2001)

6. Das Boot (1981)

7. The Thin Red Line (1998)

8. Paths of Glory (1957)

9. Hacksaw Ridge (2016)

10. 1917 (2019)

11. Dunkirk (2017)

12. Patton (1970)

13. Gallipoli (1981)

14. We Were Soldiers (2002)

15. Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)

16. The Deer Hunter (1978)

17. The Hurt Locker (2008)

18. Letters from Iwo Jima (2006)

19. Zulu (1964)

20. Black Book (2006)

21. Stalingrad (1993)

22. The Battle of Algiers (1966)

23. The Longest Day (1962)

24. The Bridge at Remagen (1969)

25. Zero Dark Thirty (2012)

26. Jarhead (2005)

27. The Patriot (2000)

28. Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970)

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

30. Enemy at the Gates (2001)

31. Glory (1989)

32. The Great Escape (1963)

33. All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)

34. The Wind That Shakes the Barley (2006)

35. Lone Survivor (2013)

36. Kelly's Heroes (1970)

37. The Green Berets (1968)

38. The Alamo (1960)

39. The Messenger (2009)

40. 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi (2016)

41. 12 Strong (2018)

42. The Last of the Mohicans (1992)

43. The Pianist (2002)

44. Rescue Dawn (2006)

45. The Beast of War (1988)

46. A Bridge Too Far (1977)

47. Behind Enemy Lines (2001)

48. Inglourious Basterds (2009)

49. The Boys in Company C (1978)

50. Red Tails (2012)

51. Battle for Haditha (2007)

52. Courage Under Fire (1996)

53. 5 Fingers (1952)

54. Company of Heroes (2013)

55. The Finest Hours (2016)

56. Windtalkers (2002)

57. Battle of the Bulge (1965)

58. The Nightingale (2018)

59. A Midnight Clear (1992)

60. Attack on the Iron Coast (1968)

61. Sergeant York (1941)

62. Empire of the Sun (1987)

63. The Pacific (2010) - Mini-series

64. The Desert Fox: The Story of Rommel (1951)

65. The Pacific (2010) - Mini-series

66. Enemy at the Gates (2001)

67. The Monuments Men (2014)

68. Days of Glory (2006)

69. Fires on the Plain (1959)

70. The Steel Helmet (1951)

71. Battle of the Damned (2013)

72. Memphis Belle (1990)

73. Crimson Tide (1995)

74. Attack on the Iron Coast (1968)

75. Sergeant York (1941)

76. Empire of the Sun (1987)

77. The Pacific (2010) - Mini-series

78. The Desert Fox: The Story of Rommel (1951)

79. Enemy at the Gates (2001)

80. The Monuments Men (2014)

81. Days of Glory (2006)

82. Fires on the Plain (1959)

83. The Steel Helmet (1951)

84. Battle of the Damned (2013)

85. The Longest Day (1962)

86. The Bridge at Remagen (1969)

87. M*A*S*H (1970)

88. Jarhead (2005)

89. The Patriot (2000)

90. Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970)

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

92. Glory (1989)

93. The Great Escape (1963)

94. All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)

95. Platoon (1986)

96. Come and See (1985)

97. Hamburger Hill (1987)

98. The Red Badge of Courage (1951)

99. Born on the Fourth of July (1989)

100. Fort Apache (1948)

[justforbooks]

The actor Michael Jayston, who has died aged 88, was a distinguished performer on stage and screen. The roles that made his name were as the doomed Tsar Nicholas II of Russia in Franklin Schaffner’s sumptuous account of the last days of the Romanovs in Nicholas and Alexandra (1971), and as Alec Guinness’s intelligence minder in John Le Carré’s Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy on television in 1979. He never made a song and dance about himself and perhaps as a consequence was not launched in Hollywood, as were many of his contemporaries.

Before these two parts, he had already played a key role in The Power Game on television and Henry Ireton, Cromwell’s son-in-law, in Ken Hughes’s fine Cromwell (1969), with Richard Harris in the title role and Guinness as King Charles I. And this followed five years with the Royal Shakespeare Company including a trip to Broadway in Harold Pinter’s The Homecoming, in which he replaced Michael Bryant as Teddy, the brother who returns to the US and leaves his wife in London to “take care of” his father and siblings.

Jayston, who was not flamboyantly good-looking but clearly and solidly attractive, with a steely, no-nonsense, demeanour and a steady, piercing gaze, could “do” the Pinter menace as well as anyone, and that cast – who also made the 1973 movie directed by Peter Hall – included Pinter’s then wife, Vivien Merchant, as well as Paul Rogers and Ian Holm.

Jayston had found a replacement family in the theatre. Born Michael James in Nottingham, he was the only child of Myfanwy (nee Llewelyn) and Vincent; his father died of pneumonia, following a serious accident on the rugby field, when Michael was one, and his mother died when he was a barely a teenager. He was then brought up by his grandmother and an uncle, and found himself involved in amateur theatre while doing national service in the army; he directed a production of The Happiest Days of Your Life.

He continued in amateur theatre while working for two years as a trainee accountant for the National Coal Board and in Nottingham fish market, before winning a scholarship, aged 23, to the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, where he was five years older than everyone else on his course. He played in rep in Bangor, Northern Ireland, and at the Salisbury Playhouse before joining the Bristol Old Vic for two seasons in 1963.

At the RSC from 1965, he enjoyed good roles – Oswald in Ghosts, Bertram in All’s Well That Ends Well, Laertes to David Warner’s Hamlet – and was Demetrius in Hall’s film of A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1968), with Warner as Lysander in a romantic foursome with Diana Rigg and Helen Mirren.

But his RSC associate status did not translate itself into the stardom of, say, Alan Howard, Warner, Judi Dench, Ian Richardson and others at the time. He was never fazed or underrated in this company, but his career proceeded in a somewhat nebulous fashion, and Nicholas and Alexandra, for all its success and ballyhoo, did not bring him offers from the US.

Instead, he played Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (Lewis Carroll) in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (1972), a so-so British musical film version with music and lyrics by John Barry and Don Black, with Michael Crawford as the White Rabbit and Peter Sellers the March Hare. In 1979 he was a colonel in Zulu Dawn, a historically explanatory prequel to the earlier smash hit Zulu.

As an actor he seemed not to be a glory-hunter. Instead, in the 1980s, he turned in stylish and well-received leading performances in Noël Coward’s Private Lives, at the Duchess, opposite Maria Aitken (1980); as Captain von Trapp in the first major London revival of The Sound of Music at the Apollo Victoria in 1981, opposite Petula Clark; and, best of all, as Mirabell, often a thankless role, in William Gaskill’s superb 1984 revival, at Chichester and the Haymarket, of The Way of the World, by William Congreve, opposite Maggie Smith as Millamant.

Nor was he averse to taking over the leading roles in plays such as Peter Shaffer’s Equus (1973) or Brian Friel’s Dancing at Lughnasa (1992), roles first occupied in London by Alec McCowen. He rejoined the National Theatre – he had been Gratiano with Laurence Olivier and Joan Plowright in The Merchant of Venice directed by Jonathan Miller in 1974 – to play a delightful Home Counties Ratty in the return of Alan Bennett’s blissful, Edwardian The Wind in the Willows in 1994.

On television, he was a favourite side-kick of David Jason in 13 episodes of David Nobbs’s A Bit of a Do (1989) – as the solicitor Neville Badger in a series of social functions and parties across West Yorkshire – and in four episodes of The Darling Buds of May (1992) as Ernest Bristow, the brewery owner. He appeared again with Jason in a 1996 episode of Only Fools and Horses.

He figured for the first time on fan sites when he appeared in the 1986 Doctor Who season The Trial of a Time Lord as Valeyard, the prosecuting counsel. In the new millennium he passed through both EastEnders and Coronation Street before bolstering the most lurid storyline of all in Emmerdale (2007-08): he was Donald de Souza, an unpleasant old cove who fell out with his family and invited his disaffected wife to push him off a cliff on the moors in his wheelchair, but died later of a heart attack.

By now living on the south coast, Jayston gravitated easily towards Chichester as a crusty old colonel – married to Wendy Craig – in Coward’s engaging early play Easy Virtue, in 1999, and, three years later, in 2002, as a hectored husband, called Hector, to Patricia Routledge’s dotty duchess in Timberlake Wertenbaker’s translation of Jean Anouilh’s Léocadia under the title Wild Orchids.

And then, in 2007, he exuded a tough spirituality as a confessor to David Suchet’s pragmatic pope-maker in The Last Confession, an old-fashioned but gripping Vatican thriller of financial and political finagling told in flashback. Roger Crane’s play transferred from Chichester to the Haymarket and toured abroad with a fine panoply of senior British actors, Jayston included.

After another collaboration with Jason, and Warner, in the television movie Albert’s Memorial (2009), a touching tale of old war-time buddies making sure one of them is buried on the German soil where first they met, and a theatre tour in Ronald Harwood’s musicians-in-retirement Quartet in 2010 with Susannah York, Gwen Taylor and Timothy West, he made occasional television appearances in Midsomer Murders, Doctors and Casualty. Last year he provided an introduction to a re-run of Tinker Tailor on BBC Four. He seemed always to be busy, available for all seasons.

As a keen cricketer (he also played darts and chess), Jayston was a member of the MCC and the Lord’s Taverners. After moving to Brighton, he became a member of Sussex county cricket club and played for Rottingdean, where he was also president.

His first two marriages – to the actor Lynn Farleigh in 1965 and the glass engraver Heather Sneddon in 1970 – ended in divorce. From his second marriage he had two sons, Tom and Ben, and a daughter, Li-an. In 1979 he married Ann Smithson, a nurse, and they had a son, Richard, and daughter, Katie.

🔔 Michael Jayston (Michael James), actor, born 29 October 1935; died 5 February 2024

Daily inspiration. Discover more photos at Just for Books…?

[victusinveritas]

Michael Caine in action in Zulu (1964). Zulu Dawn is a better film and the good guys (Zulu) win in that one.

[myfavoritepeterotoole]

Peter O'Toole and Burt Lancaster on the set of Zulu Dawn

Zulu Dawn (1979) directed by Douglas Hickox

Burt Lancaster as Col. Durnford

Peter O'Toole as Lord Chelmsford

[racefortheironthrone]

Hi, you mention Zulu shouldn't be made today. What are your thoughts on the movie?

I wrote about it here.

It's probably my favorite piece of problematic art (aside from Lovecraft and Howard); the whole thing is British imperialist propaganda from beginning to end and all of the protagonists are white colonizers who should have been driven out of Africa at assegai-point.

The important thing, when watching Zulu (or the prequel Zulu Dawn, which was much less commercially successful, because the Zulu actually win in that one and Brits in the 60s were less enthusiastic about watching their imperial armies get thrashed by native resistance movements), is to be critical and reflective about what you're consuming and not let it color your thinking about the British Empire or colonialism.

[thealmightyemprex]

@ariel-seagull-wings @themousefromfantasyland @theancientvaleofsoulmaking

@piterelizabethdevries @the-blue-fairie @princesssarisa

@amalthea9 @countesspetofi @barbossas-wench

[desertdragon]

Tagged By: @shroudkeeper left it open

Tagging: @pettyeti @finishing-touch | actually I'm gonna extend this to @icehearts to talk about someone other than Esca the Fresca | OPEN bc all of ya'll passed this around already

BASICS

Name: Vaste Valescoere / U'ralhana Odh / Osha Tayuun Nicknames: Rala (SIBLINGS ONLY) Age: 23 Nameday: 8th Sun of the 3rd Astral Moon | May 8th Race: Miqo'te | Half Sun Seeker ☀️ and Half Moon Keeper 🌙 Gender: Non-Binary Orientation: Lesbian Profession: Hunter (formerly), The Warrior of Light, Tea Farmer (later)

PHYSICAL ASPECTS

Hair: Blue / Black Eyes: Aqua end of Green Skin: Fair peach Tattoos/scars: Swooped line black tattoos underlining both eyes, horizontal scar across nose bridge from being hit by a Sundrake tail spike

FAMILY

Parents: U'odh Nunh (Father) and Oghii Tayuun (Mother, doesn't know her because she abandoned her baby) Siblings: U'rahtalo Odh (Older Sister), U'thulani Odh (Oldest Sister), U'nkanyezi Tia (Oldest Brother), U'ingwe Tia (Youngest Brother) - 1. Rahtalo is a phonetic name 2. Thulani is a Zulu imperative plural phrase meaning Be Quiet! which she got for being a loud baby among the loudest babies of her time until it stuck as a name, it shares the same root conjugate Thula that makes up the Ukhuthula in Yoshino's Sun name, which means Peace / Tranquil / Clam / Silence 3. Nkanyezi means Star, combining from Khanya (shine) and Unyezi (moonlight), due to the passing star shower when he was born 4. Ingwe means Leopard, for the spotted marks on his ear fur

Dad & Mom

Siblings shown in order: Nkanyezi, Ingwe, Rahtalo, Thulani

Grandparents: Doesn't know Moon Keeper grandparents, Sun Seeker grandparents are U'themba Nunh (Themba meaning Hope, Trust, have Faith in) and U'anele Bheka, (Anele means to be enough in quantity and is usually given as a name to the last child born, Bheka primarily means to look at something) both sets long dead In-laws and Other: Yunagi and Ihanami (Mother and Father in Law), Yhen'ir Ganajai (Older Cousin, Moon Keeper) Pets: Lewena gave him planters of a few different types and said 'These are your feelings' and he's been watering them ever since, a Coelacanth and a Shark both in tanks

SKILLS

Abilities: The power of No you | Limitless physical ability and inability to be physically hurt by anything that is not designed to kill Primals, Echo (immortality, aether reading/attack prediction, knowing all languages, can see into others pasts) , Aether Manipulation extending to 'eating' any living thing by reducing it back into raw aether, immunity to poison, disease, and being mind controlled or compelled, underwater breathing, extreme pain tolerance, unrestricted movement allowing free flowing movement on any surface that exists including air and water, can survive outer space and extreme environments made of aether, power bestowal to others, inherited the mastery of all magic, aiming weapons, axes, and sword shield fighting styles after absorbing all five Warriors of Darkness souls, Sharlayan Astrology healing techniques learned from Leveva Byrde Hobbies: Fishing (accredited member of the Fishing Guild and master fisherman), Gambling over card games like Triple Triad, Chocobo Racing, Eating big at a different restaurant every day, Collecting dildos interesting things to send to people she knows, Training, Walks until she gets lost on purpose

TRAITS

Most Positive Trait: Perseverance Most Negative Trait: Naivety

LIKES

Colors: Orange Smells: Coming Rain, Food, Perfume, Leather, Peeled Wood Textures: Leather, Cool Stone, Sand, Soil, Water, Linen, Yugiri's Scales Drinks: Tea, Water, Alcohol, Fruit Nectar

OTHER

Smokes: Never Drinks: Can drink others under the table and even to death Drugs: Never Mount Issuance: Alba the Chocobo, Alba is Italian for Dawn/Sunrise

Friends for life (his favorite food is apples)

Been Arrested: Was almost arrested several times in New Gridania until Mother Miounne intervened each time then put in a word (read: made threats and bribes) to stop it- because Wood Wailers had clocked her Moon Keeper traits and were ready to make some bullshit up to arrest her because they're racist, now as WoL she can do anything she wants without ever getting arrested because people are either afraid or worship her too much

[musicforants]

Here’s my favorite albums & songs in a year that had no shortage of great music. Click here to listen to my full Best Songs of 2022 playlist (100 tracks) via Spotify or Apple Music.

FAVORITE ALBUMS OF 2022

Alvvays - Blue Rev

Beach House - Once Twice Melody

Destroyer - LABYRINTHITIS

Spoon - Lucifer On the Sofa

Beyoncé - RENAISSANCE

Big Thief - Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe In You

SAULT - UNTITLED (God)

The Smile - A Light for Attracting Attention

Wild Pink - ILYSM

The Weeknd - Dawn FM

Weyes Blood - And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow

Panda Bear & Sonic Boom - Reset

Angel Olsen - Big Time

Wet Leg - Wet Leg

Sudan Archives - Natural Brown Prom Queen

Wilco - Cruel Country

Soccer Mommy - Sometimes, Forever

Phoenix - Alpha Zulu

Let's Eat Grandma - Two Ribbons

Arctic Monkeys - The Car

Nilüfer Yanya - PAINLESS

Horsegirl - Versions of Modern Performance

ROSALIA - MOTOMAMI

Spiritualized - Everything Was Beautiful

The Beths - Expert in a Dying Field

Ethel Cain - Preacher’s Daughter

Jack White - Fear Of The Dawn

Little Simz - NO THANK YOU

Julia Jacklin - Pre Pleasure

Hatchie - Giving The World Away

FAVORITE SONGS OF 2022

Braxe + Falcon - Step by Step (feat. Panda Bear)

Destroyer - June

The Weeknd - Less Than Zero

Beach House - New Romance

Alvvays - Belinda Says

Jamie xx - LET’S DO IT AGAIN

Big Thief - Simulation Swarm

Spoon - Wild

LCD Soundsystem - new body rhumba

Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Spitting Off the Edge of the World (feat. Perfume Genius)

Beyoncé - VIRGO'S GROOVE

Soccer Mommy - Shotgun

Let's Eat Grandma - Happy New Year

The Smile - Skrting On the Surface

Ethel Cain - American Teenager

Sudan Archives - Selfish Soul

ROSALÍA - SAOKO

Arctic Monkeys - Body Paint

Mitski - Love Me More

Wet Leg – Angelica

Alex G - Runner

Fontaines D.C. - Jackie Down The Line

Weyes Blood - God Turn Me Into a Flower

Harry Styles - As It Was

Nilüfer Yanya - midnight sun

Phoenix - After Midnight

The Beths - Expert in a Dying Field

Angel Olsen - Right Now

Jessie Ware - Free Yourself

Panda Bear & Sonic Boom - Edge of the Edge

Caroline Polachek - Billions

Arcade Fire - Unconditional I (Lookout Kid)

Horsegirl - Anti-glory

SAULT - God In Disguise

Hatchie - Quicksand

Bartees Strange - Heavy Heart

Wild Pink - See You Better Now

Hot Chip - Eleanor

Julia Jacklin - Lydia Wears a Cross

Kendrick Lamar - The Heart Part 5

Gang of Youths - in the wake of your leave

Plains - Abilene

Spiritualized - The Mainline Song

Wilco - Bird Without a Tail / Base of My Skull

Jockstrap - Greatest Hits

Father John Misty - Goodbye Mr. Blue

SZA - Shirt

Kevin Morby - This Is a Photograph

Cate Le Bon - Moderation

Jack White - That Was Then, This is Now

Link to full 100-track playlist on Spotify / Apple Music