thecinematicalgorithm

[thecinematicalgorithm]

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes - Updating the Hunger Games

This is a repost in honor of the upcoming TBOSAS film. Enjoy!

Spoiler alert for those who have not read Suzanne Collins’ prequel to the Hunger Games Trilogy. You’ve been warned.

One of the noticeable differences between the 10th Hunger Games and 74th and 75th Games that we are privy to during Katniss’ era, is the outright abuse and maltreatment of the tributes before they even reach the arena. Many of the children did not survive their time in the Capitol to actually participate in the Games. These details were in stark contrast to the luxuries lavished on Katniss, Peeta and their fellow tributes before they entered the arena.

Collins’ made it clear that these Games were a forerunner that would show the origins and early stages of the sadistic show. By the time Coriolanus Snow begins his time as a mentor in the 10th annual Hunger Games, the not-so-distant war is still fresh on many citizens’ minds, and the nature of the Games is not lost on many. This is why the mentor program was developed by Dr. Gaul. It was a way to devise how to get the Capitol citizens more interested and invested in watching the horrors play out on screen.

It’s also made clear that Snow had a personal hand in suggesting updates and improvements of the Games due to his time as a mentor and, by the end of the novel, his renewed investment in the punishment of the districts. At first glance, it may seem that Snow made an effort to make life easier on the tributes before the start of the Games, but Collins’ ensures that the reader is not fooled one bit. Everything, from the tributes being lavished on to the stylists’ and mentors’ efforts to help the tributes make lasting impressions to being allowed time to train and build strength is all for the benefit of the Capitol. Let’s break it down.

From the moment the tributes are gathered and brought to the Capitol they are essentially captives. This was made clear when Snow went to the train station to greet his tribute, Lucy Gray Baird. They arrived in a cattle car, all 24 children thrown in with one another, in chains and starving. It could not be more clear. They were animals and were to be treated as such. From there they were piled into the monkey house of an old zoo, locked behind bars in which they were exposed to the view of anyone who wandered by. Peacekeepers stood guard and again they were not given food or water. They are kept here until the start of the Games in which they are meant to be dropped into the arena, in the clothes they came in, where they will then have to fight for their lives. No training, no outside help. At least until Snow and his fellow students step in to the picture.

However, during the 74th and 75th Hunger Games we see Katniss and Peeta escorted onto a high-tech train with all the latest technology, decked out in luxurious furniture with their own private rooms and all the best foods they could ask for. On arrival they are assigned to a stylist with a team of prep artists who will clean, groom and ready the tribute for presentation in a flashy costume designed to draw the attention of sponsors. They are then taken to apartments set aside for their district, again given private chambers, a fresh wardrobe and all the food they could want. Each tribute has a mentor and escort who work together along with the stylists to create a profile of sorts for their tribute as they train and ready themselves for the Games. By the time of their interviews and subsequent entrance into the arenas, they’ve been presented in the best possible light to the sponsors, scored on their abilities and overall treated well. At least until they are expected to fight to the death.

Now why would Snow in particular go to all those lengths in making sure the tributes are treated well before the arena? Is it all for entertainment purposes? The better condition of the tributes and the more training they’ve had the more interesting the Games will be? He even initiates the celebrity status of the survivors. Providing the victors new homes and riches upon their return to their districts, pouring gifts in to the districts of the winner. Why put in the efforts if he hates the tributes so much?

I think the answer to that is actually shown when Collins’ narrates that after Snow’s return to Capitol life following his return from District 12 and his courtship of and turn on Lucy Gray he makes the conscious decision to not allow himself to fall in love again. He states that he will marry someone he could never love and will never gain a hold on his heart. In that way, he will never be swayed from his quest for power and control. I think the same goes for the Games.

During his time as a mentor, he and a few of his fellow classmates were unable to deny the inhumane treatment of the tributes during their time in the Capitol. This forced them and many other Capitol citizens to question why the Games were even allowed and whether or not they should continue. In essence, the inhumane treatment forced them to recognize their own humanity and the humanity of the tributes. Some were merely uncomfortable, some determined to try and slip food to the tributes out of pity, and some even openly protested the Games. Snow might have had multiple ulterior motives for wanting to help his tribute, but there were times when he could not justify the actions of the Capitol.

However, Snow comes to view this less as a humane response to cruelty and evil and more as a weakness that keeps the viewer from remembering the inferiority of the tributes. Therefore, going forward Snow makes sure that the tributes are treated well and amply prepared for the Games accomplishing two goals simultaneously. Create higher odds to amp up the entertainment factor to draw in the interest of the Capitol citizens, and keep them from questioning their own humanity. He basically provides all the justifications of why there’s nothing wrong with what they do to these children.

The children are presented with skills and talents that will help them fight and survive in the arena. Incentives are thrown in to even get some of the district children to volunteer for the Games in order to gain riches and honor. This serves to present the tributes as people who want to be in the arena and live for the fight so much so that they spend time developing and honing skills. Why would Capitol citizens question this if the tributes are raised as fighters anyways? It’s in their blood, it’s what they want. In his subtle snakelike way, Snow keeps the Capitol citizens in the mindset that however pretty and human-like the tributes look, the people in the district are still barbaric, inferior, and more animal than human because all they really want is to kill one another with an audience to cheer them on.

In this way the Capitol citizens are given freedom to enjoy the Games without questioning their own morals or ethics, not realizing that in their blindness and superiority they have sacrificed their humanity. They are the animals and they don’t even know it.

#the ballad of songbirds and snakes #the hunger games #tbosas #tbosas spoilers #lucy gray baird #coriolanus snow #katniss everdeen #peeta mellark #suzanne collins

[thecinematicalgorithm]

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes - Katniss and Snow

This is a repost in honor of the upcoming TBOSAS film. I can’t wait to glean more from the story.

Telling you now, spoiler alert to those who have not read The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.

Before Suzanne Collins gave us the Hunger Games prequel known as The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, she gave us The Hunger Games trilogy which follows Katniss Everdeen as she goes from tribute to rebel to the face of a revolution. From the start, Katniss was a clear protagonist who none could help root for. Flawed she may be, but the root of her existence was always clear: the survival of her family. In the course of her journey we also meet President Coriolanus Snow, a cruel and heartless tyrant bent on destroying Katniss, the revolution and continuing the oppression of the districts.

It is through Collins’ prequel that we finally come to see the origins of the Games, background on the Dark Days and most importantly, President Snow’s history explaining why and how he became the awful dictator we know so well. As I read through the prequel I could not help noticing how different Snow was from Katniss. Despite, their tenacity, strong beliefs in their actions, and an ability to garner a following that influences the masses, these characters could not be more different. In this article I have broken down the essential traits that separate Katniss from Snow and allow her to become his ultimate foil.

Fire vs Snow

Throughout the trilogy Katniss is repeatedly referred to and known as “the girl on fire”. She has a fiery temper, her actions act as a spark to the revolution, and her influences spread throughout the districts like a wildfire. She also hails from a coal mining town, and by the end of the trilogy even suffers from major burns. Her fire burns the Capitol, the districts, her family and even herself. Like a fire set on a forest that’s become too wild, her flames set about a new beginning for the nation of Panem, but no one is left unaffected or unharmed. Everyone gets burnt. 

In the prequel, Snow has a family saying that also repeated throughout the novel: “Snow lands on top”. In nature, a fire burns through brush, but snow acts like a blanket, covering all that remains. Plant-life can’t grow until temperatures rise, the snow melts and spring comes along bringing with it new life. This is a perfect analogy of what  President Snow attempts to do with the entertainment qualities of the games. Blanket coverage over the inhumanity of the games, keep people from addressing the morality of it, so that the districts stay in line and children continue to die. Nothing changes, nothing grows. That is until fire melts snow.

Wilderness vs City-life

Another difference between Katniss and Snow is there preferences for environments. Katniss obviously prefers the wilderness of the forest. She was raised near the woods, grew up hunting, gathering and running through trees. Before the Games, Katniss was desperately hoping for trees and woods. She feels safe among them, knows how to survive among the plant and animal life and even loves the color green which is clearly an indication that the trees and plants are a major source of comfort to her. She’s a nature girl through and through.

If you have indeed read the entirety of the prequel, you know exactly how different Snow is from Katniss in this regard. Coriolanus spent barely two minutes in the woods with the prospect of having to live off the land before he began to completely lose his shit. Having been raised in the Capitol, even despite his family’s financial struggle, he has almost no experience in the woods. Snow prefers buildings and man-made structures. He does not enjoy the unpredictability of wildlife for to him it is too chaotic, too difficult to control. And more than that, I believe he prefers the coldness and indifference of city-life. For some, living in the city brings joy in the form of artistry and diversity. For Snow, however it’s all about capitalism, profit and power. In the wilderness these things do not matter. Forces of nature require survival, adaptability and endurance. Its power will trump yours easily for it cannot be controlled or predicted, the longer you thrive in the woods the more you must come to depend on it. This is something Snow realized immediately he was ill-equipped and unwilling to do. Interestingly, nature still provides everything you need to survive, food, water and shelter if you know how to find it. But without the things Snow craves most, the man-made structures of a city can provide none of that. 

Survival vs Status

One of the things that surprised me about the prequel was when we learned that in his childhood Snow had very little. His family suffered after the war and they had very little to live off. He, his grandmother and his cousin Tigris, had to do all they could just to provide themselves food. In this way he and Katniss both understand the nature of poverty. However, as I read the prequel I also noticed a difference in how Snow dealt with and struggled with his poverty over how Katniss dealt with and struggled with hers.

Katniss was older than Prim and her mother had slipped into a mental depression that left her unable to provide for her children. Therefore, Katniss became the primary caregiver of her family. She hunted, gathered, entered herself into the Reaping additional times in exchange for food, and essentially did all she could to gain even a morsel of food. In Catching Fire, she even reflects on how if she’d been older she may have even sold herself to the Head Peacekeeper who was known to prey on desperate young women. She sacrificed time and resources and put herself at additional risk of being reaped, because her goal was always about survival. Hers and her families. She did not care if she was disliked by all around her or that she came from the Seam. She was poor and knew it and therefore did what she could.

Snow on the other hand was younger than Tigris who was in this case, the primary caregiver. Like Katniss, Tigris did all she could to provide for her family, selling her services and even alluding to the fact that she prostituted herself in order to provide for them. But Snow being younger and in school was focused more on keeping up with his education, determined to receive a scholarship that would enable him to attend university and thereby escape his impoverished life. Status was what was most important to him. Even in the midst of struggling to survive, he was more concerned about what people would say if they knew he was poor. In the very beginning of The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, Snow is consuming a bowl of cabbage and lamenting how much he hates it and how when he is older he is determined never to have to eat the stuff again. In this very moment, he proves to be different from Katniss who would have been grateful for the cabbage if it had been all they had to survive on. For Snow, growing up offered a ray of hope, because as a citizen of the Capitol there was a chance to escape impoverished life. For Katniss, the only escape from poverty was if she became a victor of the Hunger Games, something she had no desire to compete in and therefore no prospects of ever escaping poverty.

Freedom vs Control

I think Katniss’ preference for nature over Snow’s preference for the city actually hints at a deeper desire. Katniss’ main priority in life may be her family’s survival but in the first Hunger games book she admits to herself that some of the only times when she is truly happy is when she is out in the woods, hunting with Gale. Now, some ‘Team Gale’ fans might just take this to mean that she’s in love with Gale, but I think it’s more simply that she loves the freedom the woods and Gale offer her. Among the trees and her best friend, she is at liberty to do what she wants, say what she wants, and simply be herself. No need to wear a mask or conceal her thoughts or choose her words carefully.

Snow on the other hand views freedom as a form of chaos and in the prequel he clearly despises and even fears chaos. It’s easy to see why that is when you consider the lessons he was taught by Dr. Gaul, and his memories of the Dark Days and the war with the districts. It was a chaotic time of which he, being a small child, had little control. Add to that his subsequent poverty due to the war and you get a young man who values being able to control himself, others and his environment. As his beliefs come to align with Dr. Gaul’s in that humans are little more than beasts who will tear one another apart without structure, without someone being in control, Snow comes to the conclusion that ruling the districts with an iron-fist is the only way to keep control of his world. 

I owe you vs You owe me

Perhaps, one of the most important qualities between these two characters is how each views owing a debt. When someone saves Katniss she feels indebted to them. Rue, Thresh, Peeta Mellark, Haymitch Abernathy, Finnick Odair. These are some of the people who have spared and saved her life, sometimes multiple times, and it causes Katniss to feel a connection to each of them, feeling as if she owes them. And she hates it. She does not like to feel indebted to people, and looks for ways where she can return the favor. But on the flip-side, when Katniss saves a life she does not look for or expect return favors. She does not care if she is owed something, because she has always looked out for herself anyhow, but being in debt invites the possibility of someone having a level of control on her.

Snow is the complete opposite. When he saved Sejanus’ life in the arena he not only wanted repayment, but expected it. And yet, when Lucy Gray saved his life after the bombings he did not go around feeling indebted to her or feeling the need to return the favor. By end of the novel, he had even convinced himself that Lucy Gray was in fact evil and everything she had done was only for herself, thereby wiping away any trace of feeling that he owed her. Once again, Snow relishes having that control on people, being able to say you owe me and I’m here to collect whereas Katniss only wishes to feel free of her debts.

If you’ve read this far, thank you! Feel free to share your thoughts or any other differences you picked up on. 

#the hunger games #the ballad of songbirds and snakes #tbosas #tbosas spoilers #lucy gray baird #coriolanus snow #suzanne collins #katniss everdeen #peeta mellark

[thecinematicalgorithm]

Can't Catch Me Now: Lucy Gray and Katniss Story-Tie Analysis

I have not been on Tumblr much over the past couple of years but with the coming film The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes on its way I knew I'd be dusting this old page off. The Hunger Games series is one of my all-time favorite book series and the films are some of my favorite book-to-film adaptations, so to say I am pumped for this upcoming movie is an understatement. And to top it all, I have been obsessing over Olivia Rodrigo's new song Can't Catch Me Now, which if you've read the prequel, you'll know that it perfectly ties Lucy Gray's story to Katniss' journey. As always I want to warn anyone who might read this that spoilers for the upcoming film and Suzanne Collins' novel lie ahead. Also fair warning, this is super long cause I don't know how to be concise.

In preparation for the prequel film I have re-read TBOSAS and I am currently re-reading the original THG series (I am currently on Catching Fire, if anyone cares to know lol). I am also planning on a movie marathon the week of the prequel release, which I fully intend on subjecting my boyfriend to as he recently admitted he has only ever seen the first (and I simply cannot let him continue living life with no clue on how wonderful Peeta Mellark is). With that said, I have had a few thoughts, which I wanted to share before the release knowing that I will certainly have more thoughts after I have seen the film.

Honestly, I am going to be ridiculously obsessed for the next several weeks. I also know I wrote a couple of analyses on the differences between Snow and Katniss and the early games vs. the later games, which I will re-post so people can read them if they haven't before.

Enough chit-chat though let's get to it.

The parallels between Katniss and Lucy Gray are quite extensive and beautiful despite the characters being in many ways polar opposites. There is the saying that "Lucy Gray Baird is a performer made to hunt while Katniss is a hunter made to perform". This is a great summary of their overall character profile, and while I may at some point do a breakdown of Lucy Gray vs Katniss, I first want to write about how Lucy Gray and Katniss' story are far more connected than some might have realized. Part of the realization for me actually came while listening to Olivia's new song.

The chorus of the song reads as:

But I'm in the trees, I'm in the breeze

My footsteps on the ground

You'll see my face in every place

But you can't catch me now

Through wading grass, the months will pass

You'll feel it all around

I'm here, I'm there, I'm everywhere

But you can't catch me now

No, you can't catch me now

In terms of Katniss, I think it's been obvious for sometime that Snow particularly despises Katniss because she is a strong reminder of Lucy Gray Baird. She is a girl from District 12. She stood out during her Reaping, and swept the Captiol off their feet during her time in his city. She not only sang in the arena, but she sang a young girl "to sleep" with the very song Lucy Gray sang Maude Ivory to sleep. She used the Captiol's berries to save herself and Peeta, just as Lucy Gray used the Captiol's snakes to save herself. She wears a Mockingjay pin, the very bird which Snow undoubtedly relates to Lucy Gray and rebellion (far before it truly became the symbol of rebellion).

Katniss may not be like Lucy Gray in personality, but to Snow, Lucy Gray's spirit must seem very much alive in Katniss, and just as he tried desperately to rid the forests surrounding District 12 of mockingjays, this is one Mockingjay he wants to destroy.

The second verse of the song goes:

Bet you thought I'd never do it

Thought it'd go over my head

I bet you figured I'd pass with the winter

Be something easy to forget

Oh, you think I'm gone 'cause I left

This verse summarizes Snow's mindset at the end of TBOSAS, as we know he thinks he is safe from the threat of Lucy Gray. Her games have been erased, as time passes "there will be a vague memory that a girl sang in the arena" and even that too shall pass. However, where he goes wrong is when he fails to understand the deep connection and love the other Covey share for Lucy Gray. Despite not seeing how the story ends for them, or even having a solid explanation of Lucy Gray's ending, we at least know that Lucy Gray and her songs were not wiped from existance. Whether they believed, as he supposed, that the mayor was responsible for Lucy Gray's disappearance does not erase their connection to her.

Snow may have chosen never to allow love to control him again, but he did not erase the love those children had for Lucy Gray. Her music became all they had left of her so you can bet they continued singing them and sharing them, even if they had to do it on the down low. (I also share the common fan theory that Maude Ivory is the grandmother to Katniss Everdeen, and I'm hoping the film confirms this). Either way, Katniss clearly learned those songs from somewhere, which for Snow would have been a siren's call from the great beyond that Lucy Gray did not pass with the winter and she was not as forgotten as he had hoped.

Then we go into the bridge of the song where Olivia sings:

You, you can't, you can't catch me now

I'm coming like a storm into your town

You can't, you can't catch me now

I'm higher than the hopes that you brought down (repeats)

This is my favorite part of the song. Not only is it moving and emotional but it ties so much of Lucy's story to Katniss'. Both girls were like storms in the Capitol, sweeping the people and the nation into their stories so they could not help but be invested. Both were near impossible to control, despite Snow's best efforts, and both had a spirit of hope greater than Snow's ability to crush the highest of hopes. There's also something deeper, which intended by Olivia or not, makes this song perfect for the series. The lines "I'm coming like a storm into your town" and "I'm higher than the hopes that you brought down" is sung from the point of view of Lucy Gray. Both bring to mind images of the rebellion in THG: Mockingjay. The rebels stormed into the Capitol and their hope was higher than the hopes and lives which Snow had already destroyed in an effort to quell the rebellion.

However, just like Katniss becoming the Mockingjay, or the symbol of the rebellion, Lucy Gray had become her music. She was the anthem of the rebellion. If Katniss inspired hope, Lucy Gray was that hope. The hope of freedom. Dead or not Lucy Gray was finally free and her song reflects that truth and the rebels clung to it. Dead or alive they would be free.

Furthermore, Lucy Gray's song not only led to the freedom of Panem, but it also led to the freedom of Peeta's mind from the lies and brainwashing inflicted on him in the Capitol. Remember, Katniss always associated Peeta with hope until Snow brainwashed him. And if you'll recall, Peeta's first true breakthrough in regaining his memory of Katniss and his love for her was when he heard her rendition of "The Hanging Tree". Lucy Gray not only stormed into the Capitol but she stormed into Peeta's muddled memory, and her music was higher than the hope Snow had brought down. Lucy Gray's song led Peeta and Panem into freedom, and it helped to restore Peeta as the hope and love of Katniss' life.

Lastly, the ending of the song greatly foreshadows Katniss' journey:

There's blood on the side of the mountain

It's turning a new shade of red

Yeah, sometimes the fire you founded

Don't burn the way you'd expect

Yeah, you thought that this was the end

Of course, we all know the end is far from over for Snow. As Lucy Gray told him once, "The Capitol show isn't over until the mockingjay sings". Katniss' story ends with her singing Lucy Gray's lullaby to her children. Katniss was the fire founded by Snow, and despite his best efforts, it didn't burn out or even burn the way he expected it to. The line "the fire you founded" is also perfect to describe Snow and Katniss' dynamic because in many ways Katniss was only a threat because Snow threatened her. It's the same dynamic as Harry and Voldemort's. If Voldemort had left Harry and his family well alone, Harry never would have been the perfect enemy to thwart him. In the same way, if Snow had left Katniss and her friends and family well alone, she may never have come for him the way she did or joined the rebellion.

Interestingly enough, if Prim's name had never been called not only would the rebellion most likely have been avoided, but Lucy Gray's music may very well have been truly forgotten. Assuming Katniss is the only one left who actually remembers the songs, we know from reading the books that Katniss does not like or want to sing simply because they are painful reminders of her father. If Prim had never been threatened and Katniss had never been a contender in the games she would have been subjected to a life of mining and may have let the songs fade from memory as she lived out her miserable slave life in District 12.

But as we know that's not what happens, and instead the memory of Lucy Gray and her music is forced from Snow as Katniss is forced onto this journey proving the memory of Lucy Gray is very much still alive except this time Snow can't catch her now.

Thank you for reading if you made it this far! Please share your thoughts if you'd like!

#the ballad of songbirds and snakes #the hunger games #suzanne collins #lucy gray baird #katniss everdeen #peeta mellark #coriolanus snow #maude ivory #mockingjay #olivia rodrigo #tbosas spoilers #tbosas

[thecinematicalgorithm]

So I'm 30 years old (31 next month) and I just read Lord of the Rings for the FIRST time and watched the extended trilogy straight after with my friends for, again, the FIRST time, and I just want to know one thing...

What the hell have I been doing my whole life and why didn't someone tell me Samwise Gamgee existed and is the love of my life????

#lord of the rings #lotr #jrr tolkien #samwise gamgee #help ive been sucked into yet another fantasy realm #and i dont think I'll recover this time

[thecinematicalgorithm]

hashtag hayden confirmed

#star wars #hayden christensen #anakin skywalker #obi wan kenobi #darth vader #deborah chow

[thecinematicalgorithm]

If you weren't crying already, apparently Hayden said in the Q&A that the "I am not your failure" line was the little bit of Anakin left in Vader trying to absolve Obi-Wan of guilt.

#star wars #kenobi #kenobi spoilers #anakin skywalker #darth vader #obi wan kenobi #hayden christensen #ewan mcgregor

[thecinematicalgorithm]

Fear is the relinquishment of logic, the willing relinquishing of reasonable patterns.

But so, it seems, is love.

Love is the relinquishment of logic, the willing relinquishing of reasonable patterns. We yield to it or we fight it, but we cannot meet it halfway.

Without it, we cannot continue for long to exist sanely under conditions of absolute reality.

Steve Craine- The Haunting of Hill House

–Shirley Jackson

#star wars #anakin skywalker #padme amidala #luke skywalker #darth vader #george lucas

[thecinematicalgorithm]

Anakin Skywalker + The Songs of Orpheus “[…] the inability to let go. Not only to hold on to material things, which is greed, but to hold on to life, to the people you love - to not accept the reality of life’s passages and changes, which is to say things come, things go. Everything changes.” - George Lucas

#star wars #anakin skywalker #padme amidala #george lucas #hayden christensen #natalie portman

[thecinematicalgorithm]

"Vader was going to be extremely powerful, but he ended up losing his arms and legs and became partly a robot. So a lot of his ability to use the Force, a lot of his powers, are curbed at this point because, as a living form, there’s not that much of him left." [George Lucas; from THIS post]

This quote is rather enlightening on the meaning behind Old Ben's "He is more machine now than man" line in ROTJ to explain that Vader is "twisted and evil", something I always found a bit out of the blue. While the OT is rife with themes of nature over technology, and technology being used to control and harm the people, the ultimate evil of the trilogy (Palpatine) is entirely organic. Now, I read Ben's quote more as a commentary that being so removed from the Force has only worsened Vader's evil.

I do understand what Lucas is going for with his construction of "more machine than man" Vader being weakened and twisted by his state. Vader is on life-support in the OT and general understanding is that the Force lightning killed him by disabling said life support. He is 'the walking wounded' or perhaps more accurately 'the walking dead' -- his life ended on Mustafar and it's just misery and evil that keeps him going. We understand that he's barely human anymore.

The problem comes from the fact that there are real people out there who are missing limbs and surviving thanks to medical intervention, and to say there's something inherently "twisted and evil" about this state is ableist. It also raises questions about how much of your flesh you can lose before your experience a power loss, which is a very dry way of looking at things. (Come on. One arm = 10% power loss? What do you think?) And, obviously, it can contradict "luminous being we are, not this crude matter" and the whole existence of Force ghosts, which prove that the body is hardly necessary to be powerful and present in the Force.

What I would say is that, as with so much of the Force, this is entirely a matter of the spirit, and perception of self. When Anakin lost an arm, it didn't slow him down. So what if that's it? The prosthetic is a part of him that he accepts. He still considers himself whole, so he is still able to access the Force fully. Then Mustafar, and the spiritual death of Anakin Skywalker. He's lost everything. He's a monster. He's left in a permanent state of chronic, debilitating pain. He has no choice about being put in the suit, and the only thing that he was holding onto -- Padmé -- is revealed to be lost to him. From this point on he is in a state of spiritual unbalance, and he never has a chance to feel whole again. His body is no longer a vessel, but a prison, an unwilling, perpetual walk forward when he's lost what makes him Anakin Skywalker.

He defeats Palpatine because Luke leads by example, showing him what peace and acceptance in face of great suffering looks like. He's empowered by his son, and able to reject his own apathy, pain, and imprisonment to act. He's not interested in being the walking dead any longer, and so he chooses to finally die. This is a narrative that doesn't rely on him being in the suit, but rather the suit becomes a metaphor for.

With that, we move from, "he's twisted and evil because he's more machine than man", and into "he's twisted and evil because he's rejected his own humanity/personhood/spiritual peace."

#anakin skywalker #george lucas #darth vader #star wars #THIS!!!!

[thecinematicalgorithm]

Hmm. I'm probably, definitely, reading into this, as I feel that it's probably simply foreshadowing to Katniss wiping out Snow, but when you consider, as you pointed out, that this scene occured at the lake, as did Snow and Lucy’s fall-out, the interpretation I have is that the "snow that has accumulated"  under the windows could symbolize the impact and death that Snow wrought on District 12, the lake, and all of Panem.

As a nature-lover, I am endlessly fascinated in how Suzanne used themes of nature and seasons to represent this world and its characters and conflicts. The biggest elements of course are Katniss’ “catching fire” and snow. In a previous post in which I analyzed the differences between Katniss and Coriolanus, I talked about how Katniss’ effect is like a wildfire and Coriolanus’ tyranny is like a blanket of snow. The interesting thing about snow and wildfires is that you actually need snow, as well as rainfall, in order for revegation to occur as the land is in desperate need of moisture.

When I thought about this angle of nature it made me think about how Catching Fire is about Katniss’ influence spreading throughout the nation. The wildfire. The rebellion. The war. However, wildfires are devastating and leave the land starved and in serious need of water, aka fuel. Snow’s crackdown on the districts, the havoc he reigns down on District 12 and the already suffering people only act to fuel their rage, fuel their desire to regroup and fight. But how can they when they are so desperate and feel too weak? Too damaged by this wildfire that has left everyone burned? 

Even Katniss was lost and downtrodden at the beginning of Mockingjay. Her focus was lost, her spirit nearly broken. Snow’s bombing of her home seemed to wipe away all she had done and Snow had indeed landed on top. But as we all know the next step in revitalizing a forest after a wildfire is for spring to arrive. To warm the land, melt the snow, and begin regrowth. Katniss only began to regather herself when she saw Peeta alive and, well, alive. She had new hope, new warmth, and she pulled her forces together and kept fighting and spread that hope and that warmth until the last of the snow was gone and finally the nation could regrow.

As for it’s possible ties to the scene in The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes it’s a jump, to say the least. Obviously the symbolism of Snow equaling death, blanket coverage over injustices, cold equaling cruelty is all still there. However, I think that scene is more in lines with Lucy’s ballad. The girl lost in the snowstorm. And maybe, maybe she found her way to a better, more peaceful world. Another way you can view it is that the fallout between Coriolanus and Lucy was quick and violent, just like a snowstorm. But Snow’s tyranny over the districts lasted for years and only grew more brutal, thus “snow accumulated” over a period of time.

Sorry this is so long! I love this sort of thing and I love the beauty of Suzanne’s writing.

“While the fire catches, I sweep out the snow that has accumulated under the empty windows”

I KNOW there’s a connection in Suzanne Collins’s mind between this passage in Catching Fire and the ending to The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (i mean, hello? Catching Fire that’s getting rid of Snow?), because these both take place at the lake. But I’m too tired at the moment to analyze it. Thoughts?

#the ballad of songbirds and snakes #The Hunger Games #catching fire #Suzanne Collins #Coriolanus Snow #lucy gray baird #katniss everdeen

[thecinematicalgorithm]

I found him to be a very intriguing and realistic character and his dynamic with Max hits personally because I actually have a brother who was abusive like that. My dad used to be physically and verbally abusive toward my brothers and I. I turned all my frustrations and stress inward, retreating into books and writing and my vivid inner world. 2 of my brothers channeled their frustrations into sports, but my other brother was just angry and took that anger out on other people. He became a bully like my dad.

There have been many times when I didn't like my brother, when I wanted nothing to do with him, and there are still no excuses for his actions. but I can at least understand the roots. and at the end of the day he's my brother and I love him. I love that this show is not afraid to create those kind of dynamics. to show how pain and suffering strengthen and forge some into good-hearted, considerate people while others are just beaten into a further copies of who made them suffer.

Billy was never supposed to be a likable character. he was meant to reflect a flawed human being who failed to rise above his own pain and instead took it out on others. And he was meant to reflect that he was still a human with feelings, and fears, morals and compassion. Saving El wasn't his only single humane act. There were multiple scenes that showed he had a moral code from trying to resist attacking Heather, to telling Karen to stay away from him, as well as when he showed remorse and fear over what he was being forced to do and the tears running down his face while the mind flayer used him to speak to El.

Billy represents a flawed, miserable, scared and, ultimately human character who loses any chance of building a better life for himself, with healthier relationships, when he sacrifices himself for a girl he knows almost nothing about and dies a horrific death that no one deserves, bully or not. Billy's story is tragic because he never got the chance to change his attitude or grow into a better person or atone for his offenses against others. But his death, his sacrifice, emulates a person who had the possibility of being a far better person if he had gotten the chance.

And Max' pain over the loss of her step-brother despite the suffering he caused her shows us that she at least found things about Billy worth mourning. She found compassion in her heart for him despite him being the one who often tormented her, and part of her grief was in the loss of any hope that they could have one day forged a better sibling relationship.

It's okay to not like Billy. Frankly, he's not meant to be liked, but in a show that is heavy with the content of bullying and bullies it is great to see a character that is as complex as Billy.

why is everyone so obsessed w billy ?? he’s dead and he was an ass my sympathy surrounding his death starts and ends w max whom i adore and that’s it 😭

#stranger things #billy hargrove #max mayfield #season 4

[thecinematicalgorithm]

I'll reserve judgment for after I see his portrayal. Some actors just prefer not to have too much influence from other portrayals when bringing a character to life through the script and direction of the current project. Don't know much about the actor but hopefully he's good and hopefully the script and director's choices reflect a desire to honor the rebel's character. But seems premature to say he's dishonoring the role when we haven't even seen it yet.

Then again it's not Star Wars if there aren't fans throwing fits over every little detail that doesn't come out exactly the way they want it.

This biggest and dumbest mistake any actor could make.

#i love star wars but god do i hate the fandom sometimes #it's going to be hayden and jake lloyd all over again #hasn't even aired yet and he's getting backlash #it's just a show there's way worse issues in rhe world #i can already hear the multitudes screaming at me #i stand by what i said #star wars #obi wan kenobi

[thecinematicalgorithm]

“There is a moment- just one moment,” McDiarmid remembers. “It’s after Anakin’s been almost destroyed and he’s got little life in him. Palpatine has sent for the medical team and he’s waiting for them to arrive- and he just gently touches Anakin’s forehead. Sidious doesn’t have any qualities we normally associate with humanity, except he does have a master-servant relationship with Anakin. Anakin means something to him.”

THE MAKING OF STAR WARS: EPISODE III - REVENGE OF THE SITH By J. W. Rinzler

#revenge of the sith #star wars #anakin skywalker #nope nope nope #get your gross hands off him #i hate palpaptine 4eva

[thecinematicalgorithm]

I CAN’T EVEN......THIS IS A DREAM COME TRUE!!!!!! 

new still of Ewan McGregor as Obi-Wan Kenobi in Obi-Wan Kenobi (2022)

#obi wan kenobi #disney plus #ewan mcgregor #star wars

[thecinematicalgorithm]

You know I was thinking of this scene and of Grindelwald's "brand" of villainy so to speak in comparison to Voldemort's and something I had thought of really stuck with me.. Love is a big theme in the Wizarding world. It is a power in itself and immensely more powerful than even the most powerful of dark magic. In Harry's time Voldemort was a villain because he didn't have love. He was literally incapable of it, had never known or desired to know love, and was therefore devoid of all the qualities it gave you when you love someone else selflessly.

Grindelwald however isn't quite the same because I think he is capable of and desires love but doesn't know how to love. In the scene after the blood oath is destroyed he asks Dumbledore "who will love you now"? Immediately, I thought of my dad and every other abusive relationship I've ever heard of in which the abuser will try to use fear and manipulation to keep their partner from leaving by telling them no one else could or would ever love them. My dad used this on my mom for years and it worked. It wasn't until my 20s, and some much needed therapy, that I realized my dad used this because deep down he feared the same thing for himself.

Now I could be reading into it, or just applying my own experiences to the film, but it was honestly uncanny when I realized how similar Grindelwald is to my dad, minus the magic, 😉 which is why I think as a villain he's not outright evil, or devoid of goodness, like Voldemort. I think he does love, in a limited and unhealthy way like my dad, and he has a desire to be loved and admired which I think is why he loves having followers, loves hearing his name chanted in the streets and prefers to think he is part of a superior race. However, true and selfless love doesn't hurt the ones we love and it doesn't hold them hostage by telling them no one else can love them or in this case holding them under a blood oath. Dumbledore and Grindelwald's love story is tragic not because it could never be but because it was never true and Dumbledore knows it.

However, like many abusers fail to realize love can come from many places and in many forms. Dumbledore never fell in love again romantically but he was most certainly loved by the many children who came and went to Hogwarts. The scene of his death, his funeral, and the legacy he left behind, the title his students chose in Harry's year "Dumbledore's Army", was evidence of a man who was not just respected and admired but loved completely and fully.

"Who will love you now?" Grindelwald asked.

If Dumbledore ever dwelled on these words all he needed to do was look at the loyalty, respect and love those kids gave him and his staff had for him. While their love might not be what he had dreamed of during the "summer Gellert and I fell in love" it would be far better because it would be a love that was full and selfless and innocent. Harry was as close to a son or grandson as Dumbledore ever had and despite Dumbledore's attempts to keep him at arms length, he loved Harry immensely and Harry loved him in return and mourned him for years to come.

So while Dumbledore and Grindelwald's story is tragic we know that Dumbledore will go on to be loved perhaps more than any other wizard of that time.

I think nothing hurt as bad as Albus sitting on that bench watching the wedding and love being lived and fulfilled. He always preaches about love being the greates power there is. And there he sat, knowing he would never and could never have that. He could never act again on his feelings, his love would never be lived, never be fulfilled and he would never marry the man he loved.

Yet he got never bitter or cynical because of it.

Despite all his mistakes and all the things he did wrong, it is insane how he still saw love as something good.

#fantastic beasts and the secrets of dumbledore spoilers #fbawtftsod #grindeldore #albus dumbledore #gellert grindelwald #albus x gellert #harry potter #secrets of dumbledore #spoilers

[thecinematicalgorithm]

1917: Schofield’s Run

April 6th, 1917 Day! I am so happy this is something that fans of the film celebrate and in a lot of ways it is a day to not only celebrate an incredible film but also a story dedicated to men who actually served and died. Also it has been awhile since I’ve posted anything as life keeps me busy and I’m not big on technology but I thought I would do another analysis on my favorite scene of the film. 

It was not easy to choose my favorite scene. The scenes with Richard Madden and Andrew Scott were two of my favorite supporting character scenes. The scene of Schofield riding in the wagon was one of the most emotionally charged scenes. The ‘Night Window’ and ‘Wayfaring Stranger’ scenes are two of the most beautiful and haunting I have ever seen. But it’s the climax, Schofield’s desperate and ill-advised dash over No Man’s Land, that left me wide-eyed and breathless the first time I watched it and still has me tensing up to this day as he poises himself to make that wild run.

Anyone who knows even just snippets of WWI knows that going into No Man’s land is tantamount to suicide. It’s why Wonder Woman climbing over the wall as the men cowered in the trenches was such a powerful and poignant superhero moment. And this scene, while shocking, was actually set up and foreshadowed from the beginning of the film when Lt. Leslie shook his head in annoyed disbelief that two young soldiers were being ordered to cross No Man’s land and walk into the German front lines. He essentially told them “you are going to die”, before they went over. And prior to popping over the top, Schofield stopped Blake and asked, “Are you sure?” because at that time Schofield most certainly was not. But Blake was desperate, and focused on his brother, and this propelled him and Schofield over the top.

Schofield at this point in the war is absolutely no stranger to death. He has seen death, has smelled it, has been at death’s door himself. But like most soldiers he had forced the reality of death into a compartment of which he kept locked and un-examined. When he crossed No Man’s land at the beginning of the film he barely batted an eyelid at the sight of all those rotting corpses. Men die in war; that’s the reality.

By the film’s climax he prepares to enter No Man’s land again. Now the ground is untarnished, green, whole and hundreds of men have the potential to live one more day. But only if he completes his mission. Only if he finds the strength and the will to keep moving. And not only that but now it’s more than a mission. More than another random assignment from a superior who doesn’t even know his name or his story. Blake had saved his life but he couldn’t save Blake. However, he might be able to save these men. These hundreds and thousands of men on both sides who don’t know that they don’t have to fight today. And Blake’s brother who doesn’t know he’s lost his sibling.

The run across No Man’s land is daring and brave, but in many ways it’s ridiculously stupid and reckless, which is how you know that for Schofield this is no longer about a mission. It’s about a promise. Schofield’s journey has changed him. Blake has changed him and as he climbs into that dangerous territory he carries Blake with him. In many ways ‘Schofield’s Run’ was ‘Blake’s Run’. This was Blake readying himself to pop over the top and nothing was going to stop him from reaching his brother. When you think about how Schofield’s journey transformed him from a man who was wholly uncertain about entering a zone that was potentially dangerous to a man who doesn’t hesitate to enter a zone he knows is insanely dangerous, you come to realize that those who have died are not truly gone when we continue to carry them with us. Schofield carries Blake with him and he will continue to carry him until the day he dies.

That’s the power of this film and these characters. Schofield’s run means so much more than just being the intense climax of a film. It’s the culmination of his journey. The final transformation of a cautious, battle-worn soldier. It’s a story that shows us that even in the midst of war, these men (boys really) are still human and their experiences, hopes, and fears were extremely real and sharp enough that I sincerely believe there were more than one soldier from that time that if you could have asked would you have taken that risk and run across No Man’s land in order to save hundreds of men from death, their answers would have been hell yes! Which is why the characters of Blake and Schofield, while fictional, fill so real and poignant.

If you read my little breakdown I thank you and hope you enjoyed! Please feel free to share what your favorite scene was and what it means to you!

#1917 #will schofield #Thomas Blake #war #spoilers #Sam Mendes #Richard Madden #andrew scott #george mackay #dean charles chapman

[thecinematicalgorithm]

Spiderman: No Way Home Breakdown Review Part II (Major SPOILERS!!!)

If you have not read the first part of my Spiderman review you can read it here:  https://thecinematicalgorithm.tumblr.com/post/674060922113966080/spiderman-no-way-home-breakdown-review-part-1

Thank you in advance to any who take the time to read my thoughts, and remember always feel free to respectfully share your own. With that said, let’s move on to the second part of my review and remember spoilers spoilers spoilers!

One of the biggest reasons I wanted to see this film so badly was the chance to maybe see the faces of Tobey Maguire’s and Andrew Garfield’s Peter Parkers. Tobey Maguire is the Spiderman I grew up with and watched in theaters when I was a child. He was the reason I first fell in love with the web-crawler. Then in my early 20′s I watched as Andrew Garfield gave his spin on the character and despite the disappointment so many had for his version I loved it and I was entirely disappointed that Sony did not go on to complete his storyline. So when rumors abound stated that Tobey and Andrew would indeed be appearing in No Way Home you can bet your ass that I and the rest of my family pre-ordered tickets. And as you all know we Spiderman fanatics were far from disappointed.

Before I get on with expounding on why Andrew and Tobey’s appearances were not only so welcome but vital to the success of this movie, I want to point out that if they had not appeared, aside from inevitable fan disappointment, this movie would still not have been half-bad. The plot, the acting from Tom and side characters, the lessons learned and the sacrifice he makes at the end stands on its own, but having Tobey and Andrew’s Peters appear and help Tom to take that step into adulthood elevated the story-line so that it was damn near perfect, and it opened up a floodgate of opportunities for the character.

Having our favorite Spidermen interacting and working together on screen is a comic book fan dream come true. If you had told me that this would happen when they first introduced Tom’s Spiderman in the MCU I never would have believed it. But now having seen No Way Home I feel I should have known when given the chance Marvel would always give fans what they want. The Avengers films have already proven that. Funny too because after Endgame I had been feeling kind of flat with a lot of the projects they’ve released. They’re not bad but I guess I felt that I was becoming bored with Marvel films and I’m exhilarated to know that Marvel still has the ability to blow my mind with their storytelling.

And that is what Marvel has done by not only successfully bringing Tobey and Andrew back, but giving them absolute relevance and influence to the plot without overshadowing Tom. As I’ve said Tom’s role stands on its own. It has substance that rounded out the Home trilogy as a beautiful arc of self-identify, coming-of-age and a superhero origin story. By including Tobey and Andrew in that crucial moment of shouldering adulthood and all its consequences however, we were able to bring much needed closures to all three Peters. Now before everyone attacks me over being misinformed or behind the times, I’m not indicating that this is the last we will see either actor as I am aware they have been confirmed, or at the least highly rumored, to be returning at some point in their own projects. However, this film acted as a closure to each of the story lines they had all been part of while simultaneously being a beginning for each of them.

Tobey Maguire’s Peter Parker from the original Spiderman trilogy is definitively the most rounded and mature of the Spidermen. If, as a fan I had to choose for one of the three to not appear in any more Spiderman movies, I would have to go with Tobey. I absolutely look forward to seeing him again, but after this film his Peter’s story feels the most complete. However, from what I’ve heard we will most likely being seeing him in further projects.  I read in an interview that Tobey and Andrew were meant to be less like older mentors to Tom and more like mirrors, or glimpses of what he could be. It is highly significant that it was Tobey that stopped Tom from killing the goblin, and nearly sacrificed himself to do so, rather than Andrew. Tobey has already traveled the road of forgiveness and mercy. He has experienced darkness and overcame it and as he told Doc Ock, he has been trying to do better. For Tom to stare into the eyes of a Peter Parker who has learned this lesson, we see Tom glimpsing a future in which he has moved beyond his pain, beyond his hate, and is at peace with the world despite its darkness, and has indeed become a better version of himself.

Andrew’s Peter however acted as a mirror into what Tom could become if he chose a darker path. While Andrew is by no means an evil Spiderman he entirely conveyed a Peter who was broken, lost, lonely and as he claimed, bitter. If Tobey represented the Peter that has overcome loss and hatred then Andrew represents the Peter who has allowed himself to be weighed down with his grief and rage. Andrew gave a subtle but powerful performance as a Spiderman who is not at peace with the world or himself but rather haunted by Gwen’s death and simply trying to go through the motions of living. Having these other versions of Peter included into the MCU allowed for Tom’s Spiderman to make the right choice and then to make an incredibly difficult sacrifice and ultimately transform a boy into a man. It also allowed us to see Tobey round out his character’s maturity and transform into a wise, mature Spiderman who is ready to lead another generation, and it allowed Andrew to redeem his Spiderman and open a door into a re-discovery of purpose.

If each Spiderman were to get his own film going forward this is what I would love to see from each. From Tobey I would love to see a Spiderman 4 film in which he discovers Miles Morales and becomes a mentor and partner in which he ultimately passes the torch of Spiderman and then retires to live out his days with MJ and possibly some spider babies. From Andrew I’d like to see him return to his Amazing Spiderman franchise and portray a Peter who has new life breathed into him and sets out to continue to redeem himself from Gwen’s loss and subsequent bitterness. From Tom the possibilities are endless.

Aside from the incredible plot lines and story arcs achieved in this film, all three actors have proven themselves to have an incredible knowledge of their character, a strong grasp on the mannerisms we’ve come to expect from each Peter, and praise-worthy acting abilities to be able to pull it all together with seemingly effortless ease. The actors had wonderful chemistry and gave subtle yet powerful performances without overshadowing one another and I sincerely hope we will see all three together on the screen again.

Thank you again for reading and here’s to hoping from more Spiderman news soon!

#spiderman #mcu #spoilers #peter partker #no way home #marvel #comics #tom holland #andrew garfield #tobey maguire