#but unintended consequences are very Don Quixote

[hungriesttable]

if the Sinners got a dog

(below the cut because I actually have a decent amount of thoughts on this)

Outis: one of the only (and possibly THE only) sinners committed to disciplining the dog. She’s a bit perturbed that the dog won’t reliably sit/stay on command because it tends to jump at random intervals instead (Don Quixote’s influence).

Has some belief that if she speaks in a voice that’s authoritative enough, the dog will understand what she’s saying. Is displeased when that doesn’t happen. “Why are you trying to sit on me? No.” “It’s because the dog likes you” “If she likes me she will sit politely on the ground as she is supposed to”

Rodya: She was the one who named the dog, and probably rescued it off of the street, insisting that they should keep the dog at least for a little while. Feeds the dog a bit of whatever the Sinners are having. “That’s not good for dogs!” “A little won’t do her any harm~”

Sinclair: He wasn’t sure what to make of the dog at first (it’s probably not vaccinated, and he only became sure it didn’t have rabies after a couple of days), but he’s pretty fond of it. Whenever he’s in need of company, the dog appears without him needing to say anything. It’s warm, soft, and close, and he definitely thinks of it as a family member. That being said he personally has a steep learning curve of “how to take care of a dog” (if he had one in his previous years then there was probably a butler to take care of it)

Heathcliff: I recently read Wuthering Heights. This gives me reason to suspect that Heathcliff would not be a big fan of the dog, at least at first. He’s fine with it from a distance, but protests to having to touch it (and to having it touch him). I’d imagine that it gets on his good side eventually, though, and he’d probably be one of those people who wants the dog to love him the most out of everyone.

Ryōshū: They weren’t really sure how she would react to the dog at first. She’s currently trying to teach it how to sic. Given the opportunity, she’ll examine the dog’s body. Her efforts of questionable motivation led to the discovery that the dog is missing a tooth.

Gregor: After 5.5, I think it’s safe to say that he’s the “dad with the dog he didn’t want”. He notices that the dog is repulsed by the smell of cigarettes and doesn’t smoke as actively when he’s around it.

Don Quixote: She wants the dog to be her sidekick. She’s taught the dog how to hug (ie how to jump and put its paws on her chest/shoulder), and is hoping to teach the dog how to do some advanced stunts. “Move forth, my companion, and fetch mine lance!” (Dog does nothing)

Yi Sang: The dog is his buddy. He’s a bit concerned about the idea that the dog could be involved in Limbus Company’s business, but has no problem with the idea of teaching the dog some more simple stuff (eg how to track scents and find lost people/things).

Faust: If there’s a City equivalent to a Wikipedia page on dogs, she probably read it. Several times. She wouldn’t say it, but the dog’s capriciousness often confounds her. In lieu of a microchip, she made a tracking collar for the dog.

Meursault: He and the dog share a certain special bond due to his willingness to walk, clean up after, and generally take care of the dog when others don’t feel like it. He’s not necessarily a fan of the whole “spontaneous tackling” thing, but he’s big enough to avoid being pushed over and has few other complaints about the dog. With the lack of interest in training the dog on the bus, he doesn’t see the use of disclosing what he knows about training dogs.

Ishmael: She likes the dog. Walking the dog often brings her mixed feelings, since it reminds her of the other experiences she’s had with being on the end of a guiding rope. She’s figured out that she can derail Heathcliff’s train of thought by invoking the dog, either physically or in name, and she’s greatly enjoying this ability.

Vergilius: He was dubious about the whole “dog on the bus” thing. Since Charon seems to enjoy the dog’s presence, however, he sees no point in objecting to it. He doesn’t dislike dogs, but the fact that anything bad happening to the dog could have catastrophic consequences means he’s always a little on edge around it. If the Sinners weren’t planning on doing their best to take care of it before, they certainly are after receiving some Red Gaze-brand reminders to be responsible pet owners.

Dante: Rewinding dog scratches is a small burden, but please, can SOMEONE cut the dog’s nails? They like the dog, but their clock head doesn’t seem to win them any canine popularity points. They’re both disappointed and relieved that the dog doesn’t count as a thirteenth Sinner.

#limbus company #lcb outis #lcb rodya #lcb ryoshu #lcb sinclair #lcb heathcliff #lcb gregor #lcb don quixote #lcb yi sang #lcb faust #lcb meursault #lcb ishmael #limbus company vergilius #limbus dante #I wasn’t sure I had something to say about all of the Sinners. But I did #please forgive me if I’m missing a Vergilius related dog incident. I never finished Leviathan 😔 #as a dog enjoyer I can safely say that you should NOT teach your dog ‘uppies’ #may have unintended consequences #but unintended consequences are very Don Quixote

[nemolian]

Terry Gilliam’s Don Quixote film finally hits the big screen after 25 years

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Jonathan Pryce stars as an aging Spanish cobbler who becomes convinced he is Don Quixote in Terry Gilliam's film,

The Man Who Killed Don Quixote

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It's been 25 years in the making, but The Man Who Killed Don Quixote, director Terry Gilliam's tribute to the classic Spanish novel, has finally hit the silver screen. The project has foundered and been revived so many times, it became a poster child for Hollywood's notorious development hell, with a reputation of being cursed. But Gilliam persevered, and while the finished product isn't exactly a masterpiece, it definitely reflects the singular vision of one of our most original filmmakers.

(Mild spoilers for the film and Miguel de Cervantes' 17th-century novel below.)

Miguel de Cervantes' Don Quixote is inarguably one of the most influential works of Spanish literature. The book is written in the picaresque tradition, which means it's more a series of loosely connected episodes than a plot. It follows the adventures of a nobleman (hidalgo) named Alonso Quixano who has read far too many chivalric romances and becomes convinced he is a knight errant. With his trusty peasant sidekick, Sancho Panza, he embarks on a series of random tragicomic adventures, with the Don's hot temper frequently getting them into scraps. (Sancho usually gets the worst of the beatings and humiliations.) Don Quixote is the archetype of the delusional dreamer, tilting at windmills and believing them to be giants, preferring his fantasy to mundane reality.

Everything went almost comically wrong from the start.

Gilliam came up with the idea for his Don Quixote film back in 1989 when he read Cervantes' novel, but he didn't secure funding until 1998. Johnny Depp signed on to play the role of Toby Grisoni, while his then-partner Vanessa Paradis would be the female lead. Shooting commenced in 2000 in Navarre, Spain. But everything went almost comically wrong from the start. There were conflicts with the various actors' schedules, making it difficult to get everyone on set at the same time. The production site was near a NATO military base, and F-16 fighter jets flew overhead the entire first day of shooting, making it necessary to dub those scenes in post-production. A flash flood ruined the second day of filming by damaging equipment that was not covered by the insurance policy. The flood also caused continuity problems, since the colors of the terrain had noticeably changed.

Finally, on the fifth day, the film's star, the late Jean Rochefort, was clearly in pain during the scenes on horseback, despite being an experienced horseman. He turned out to have prostate problems and a double herniated disc, and while Gilliam tried to shoot around Rochefort's scenes, it soon became clear the ailing actor could not return to the set. The production was officially cancelled in November 2000.

The shoot did produce a critically acclaimed documentary film, Lost in La Mancha (2002), detailing the production's various woes. (It was originally intended to be an accompanying "making-of" special feature. A second follow-up documentary is in the works, titled He Dreamed of Giants.) In it, cinematographer Nicola Pecorini claims that "never in 22 years of being in this business have I seen such a sum of bad luck."

In the years since, Gilliam kept trying to revive the project with a constantly shifting cast and multiple rewrites of the script. Finally, he succeeded in getting funding and completing The Man Who Killed Don Quixote, only to have its release delayed by legal disputes involving one of the earlier producers. The film ultimately debuted at Cannes last year, although it was ineligible for the top prize because of its ongoing legal woes.

They might be giants

Don Quixote tilting at a windmill.

YouTube/ONE Media

It gets the better of him.

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"Cut!" Adam Driver plays Toby Grisoni, an auteur advertising executive who comes to Spain to shoot a commercial.

YouTube/ONE Media

"I am Don Quixote!" The beginning of a years-long delusion.

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A delusional Javier mistakes Toby for Sancho Panza.

YouTube/ONE Media

Javier/the Don ridicules the notion that his lowly Sancho can read.

YouTube/ONE Media

A joust! Why not?

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Toby and Javier/the Don run into Angelica (Joana Ribeiro), whom Toby first met while making his student film.

YouTube/ONE Media

Thou shalt not covet thy boss's wife, Toby: Olga Kurylenko plays the alluring Jacqui.

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An elaborate gala designed to humiliate the delusional Javier.

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Oligarch Alexei Miiskin (Jordi Molla) uses and abuses Angelica.

YouTube/ONE Media

A steamy tango as Toby and Angelica rekindle their spark.

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You see windmills, but Don Quixote sees giants.

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Don Quixote cannot die; he will ride forever with his trusty companion, Sancho Panza.

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The Man Who Killed Don Quixote features Jonathan Pryce as Javier, an old cobbler in a small Spanish village. He becomes convinced he really is Don Quixote after a visiting college student named Toby Grisoni (Adam Driver) casts him in a student film about the legendary hidalgo. Ten years later, Toby is a hotshot advertising executive who returns to Spain to shoot a Quixote-themed commercial. He finds Javier still so caught up in his delusion that Javier mistakes Toby for his loyal sidekick, Sancho Panza. Together, they set off on a series of increasingly wild and incoherent misadventures. And like Cervantes' Sancho, Toby often bears the brunt of the consequences.

The cast is fantastic, especially Pryce and Driver. The dialogue is sharp and witty, and Gilliam remains a master at skirting the fine line between comedy and tragedy—much like Cervantes himself. The first half of the film works really well, driving home the unintended consequences that a naive Toby's student film wrought on the people of that small Spanish village. ("I'm incorporating the idea of the damage that films do to people, so it's become a bit more autobiographical," Gilliam told the BBC last year.)

This may be one of those visionary films that will play better with age.

Unfortunately, the plot, such as it is, unravels into delirious chaos during the second half. Toby even breaks the fourth wall at one point to wonder aloud, "There's a plot?" Certainly the sumptuous visuals and dazzling dream-like sequences, blurring the line between what's really happening and what's just in Toby's head, reflect Gilliam's unique sensibility. It's the same sensibility that produced Gilliam's incomparable dystopian satire, Brazil (1985), which kept the director's wilder instincts well-constrained and was all the better for it. The Man Who Killed Don Quixote might have benefited from a few more constraints. But given the sheer effort of will it took just to make the film, I'm inclined to forgive its chaotic excesses. It helps to be familiar with the source material, since the film shares the same meandering episodic structure and weaves in plenty of nods to Cervantes' novel.

"The problem is that people have very high expectations," Gilliam told the BBC in May 2017. "And a lot of people say I'm a fool to make the film, and that it would have been better to let people imagine how great it would have been rather than making it a reality and disappointing them. People love Roman ruins because they're not complete and you can imagine them. So I may be making a great mistake. Maybe the film would be better as a fantasy."

He has a point. Personally, I'm glad Gilliam finally finished his film, the way he always wanted, with all its messy imperfections. Whether it connects with audiences remains to be seen. This may be one of those visionary films that will play better with age. Its spirit is true to the picaresque tradition, and the Man of La Mancha would approve, I think. Gilliam has been tilting at this particular windmill for 25 years, and it's gratifying to see him finally conquer the giant.

Trailer for Terry Gilliam's The Man Who Killed Don Quixote.

via:Ars Technica, April 14, 2019 at 09:01AM

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