#I'm really glad that you like my designs for the Hollywoods!!

[imagionary]

if you're open to talking about them (unless it's more of like a 'reveal information about them over time' type of thing) do you maybe have any information on dave's hollywoods? they're super interesting to me, and i love the fact that imps in your au apparently gain a sort of resemblance to the people they consider to be their boss. i really love the unique design they have too...guys with weirdo eyes just like their boss... also I'M REALLY SORRY if this is like worded weirdly or whatever! this ask was actually originally a lot longer (and it honestly is still pretty long for an ask...) until i realized i should probably shorten it...

totally unrelated as well, but i would love to learn more about this au and stuff, even if it isn't through art! i really liked the sort of writing post you made about the whole 'buck and dave and their connection with high roller in your au' thing and i would definitely love to see more sort of writing posts like that (if you want!)

Golly,, you have no idea how much I loved getting this ask, this is very kind to me, thank you! I'm shy when it comes to talking about our AU, but it means a lot to me that you're so interested in it, and that you'd like to read my silly ramblings! ^v^ 💚

Dave has his three Hollywoods: Left Suit, Middle Suit, and Right Suit. They are his posse, his guys, his main men, his trio, his henchmen sorta, etc, etc.

The three of them are all supposed to look exactly the same, and they did for an extremely long time, however, the first week that Evils and I were telling story, there was a mass layoff happening in COGS.Inc, and Left Suit happened to get fired; Dave was FURIOUS about this, because his Hollywoods were supposed to have special protection against that sort of thing, but he did his best to keep his cool during his time without Left Suit,, the whole situation seemed bogus and fishy to him, but there was nothing he could do about it, so life went on; I think it was around a year since Left Suit had been fired, but it was revealed that it was an inside job; Doctor Googlemuffin and Brian were so incredibly interested in how High Roller had come into being, that they wanted to see if they could make any clone fusions using extracted soul essence from one of Dave's Hollywoods (so, they decided to have Left Suit fired without notifying Dave or anyone else of the reasoning, and slipped his name on the list last second)

Doctor Googlemuffin and Brian's plans worked, albeit better than they had planned; almost every clone fusion they had conceptualized had finished itself just like how High Roller had; except the Aggregator, Top Dog, and Bulldozer all seemed to have a strangeness to them that the two scientists couldn't foresee:

The Aggregator and Top Dog were highly aware that they were created in the lab, and that they were fusions of two peoples blueprints (created using two people's blueprints as basis? Idk how to explain it) (the Aggregator being a secret project that Doctor Googlemuffin was creating to spite Brian; she used Brian and Graham's blueprints as a basis) (Top Dog was created using Graham and Zak's blueprints as basis); both were created with Graham's strangely advanced blueprints, so Brian and Doctor Googlemuffin chock off their peculiarities to being side effects of being created with them in mind;

However, Bulldozer is different. He doesn't have Graham's strange blueprints to blame. He was created with Mr. Wilde and Winnie's blueprints as basis, and he survived the destruction of the conglomerate extension.. well, came back to life after his body put itself back together (he had been mangled and shot through the core multiple times by Spruce to finish him off).

The reason I'm rambling about all of this is because Winnie's pixie dust magic, and Wilde's tough material, blended with Left Suit's soul essence in a peculiar way and it gave Bulldozer near indestructibility and rejuvenation powers like a Hollywood. So, this is why, when Left Suit was alive again, he had gone out and sweet talked Bulldozer and gave him a kiss; he was taking his soul essence back. Being near indestructible and with the power of rejuvenation had left Bulldozer unable to comprehend that the way he was treating the molemen, maintenance crew, and the skelecogs that were building the conglomerate extension (before it exploded) wasn't good. If he could withstand as much as he could, everyone else surely could to, is what he ignorantly believed; so Left Suit took his soul essence back to knock him down a peg; Bulldozer is still incredibly resilient, but he doesn't have his rejuvenation abilities anymore; Bulldozer doesn't know this yet, but once he gets hurt real bad again (hopefully he wont) he'll understand what he was doing to his subordinates.

Golly,, I got side tracked, oops,, so, after Dave had found out about why Left Suit had been fired, and what he was being used for, Doctor Googlemuffin made sure to get Left Suit finished up so she could return him to Dave. Dave was furious about this, he knew that Left Suit wouldn't have all of his soul essence back, but he would take what he could get,, he missed Left Suit so so much,,

However, once Left Suit was finished, he appeared within the darkness in High Roller's office, because, according to his contractual existence, he belonged to Dave,, but High Roller was made with Dave's scrap, so there was a paradoxical issue with the contract,, Left Suit now has feathery fur like High Roller (albeit, his is still white and black and not green like High Roller); Left Suit was there to serve High Roller, but Dave wanted Left Suit back, so he made some contractual changes with High Roller (having High Roller sign that he wouldn't be in charge of any of Dave's Hollywoods) amd they shook signed on it with a cold Inky electric flame entering High Roller's body through their handshake. And thus the deal was made and Dave could keep Left Suit as his own (Left Suit still has feathers that he tries to pluck out, but they always come back, so he hides them so he can look like Middle and Right)

Left, Middle, and Right all have the same voice and think and act relatively the same; however, if someone were to get to know them long enough, it's possible to get to know their differences:

Left Suit happens to talk smoother and can come off as the most friendly and calm of the three; he's got a playful sass to him; he's the weakest of the three now (powers wise), since parts of his essence has been stolen; he's the least likely to get angry

Middle Suit happens to be the most stern of the three, and is normally in charge of trying to calm Dave down when the time arises; he happens to be the most protective of Dave and his wishes; despite Right being more likely to get into trouble, Middle is more likely to get upset (still a rare occurrence that he'd show it though)

Right Suit happens to be the more tricky of the three and can come off as a bit sassy and the most likely to break Dave's rules, however he is also the most trusted when it comes to handling dirty work; out of the three Hollywood's, Right is most likely to "break character" and have his expression change

All of the Hollywoods have little horns that they hide from their appearance, as to appear more normal, like how Dave hides his more monstrous parts

The Hollywoods all have gloves and white cores like Dave, to show that they are under Dave's control; their plug tails can be used to control people like how Dave can with his, however, their abilities to erase or eat people's memories aren't as powerful as Dave's, so if you ever have your memories of an event wiped by a Hollywood, it'll seem like you had a lucid nightmare, but you'll think it wasn't real

The Hollywoods, like Dave, can disappear and appear within the dark; Dave can also use his Hollywoods as extra eyes for him; whatever they see, Dave can see, if he has his thoughts set on knowing (Dave can also give his Hollywoods knowledge of things they're not supposed to know either)

Sorry if this got rambly,, I get shy when talking about our AU, so I hope this answers your question! You're more than welcome to ask questions if you have any

#thank you again for the ask!! it means a lot to me that you'd want to know more about the Hollywoods #I love them a lot 🥺💚 #imagionary rambles #toontown corporate clash #ttcc #toontown: corporate clash #ttcc au #toontown #mr hollywood #hollywoods #Dave Brubot #major player #left suit #middle suit #right suit #doctor googlemuffin #ttcc brian #since the others aren't mentioned too often I won't tag them i don't think? #I'm really glad that you like my designs for the Hollywoods!! #that means a lot to me JCJFFJ 🥺🥺💚💚💚

[harveyguilleniconodelamoda]

Thoughts on Fashion & Style from Harvey's Instagram Live with Samantha Rei Crossland

Last night, Harvey Guillén joined fashion designer Samantha Rei Crossland for a chat on Instagram Live to talk about life, style, the entertainment industry, and to answer some fan questions! The full video may be available via Harvey or Samantha's IG eventually, as they saved it at the end, but in the meantime I've compiled some of the questions and answers related to Harvey's relationship with fashion and style here!

This text is taken from the video and has been lightly edited for clarity.

Samantha: Dollie says, "as a fan you can really tell Harvey worked deliberately through fashion and photoshoots to establish his style in person, in front of the camera, and on the red carpet. I'd love to hear more about that journey and additionally if you have any tips for achieving confidence in style and fashion."

Harvey: Wow, good question! I feel like that was an avenue that never was presented to me as an option for the first part of my career. You know everyone's like "oh who dressed you?" I dressed myself! I mean I still do, but I didn't really get any kind of help with anything stylish-wise until recently, when I got the opportunity to work with different designers and stylists who introduced me to those designers. That's really what it is: a stylist will get you into an atelier or someone's house, like Christian Siriano or someone like that. But for the most part, for a long time I just kind of dressed myself, and on a budget.

Knowing Harvey was putting these kinds looks together by himself on a budget in 2017 and 2018, I will never again cut any of the Chrises with their MCU money a single centimeter of slack for showing up year after year, to event after event, in bland black or navy suits.

Harvey (continued): Because stylists are worth every penny, but they're expensive! They are expensive because they do a great job, but you also have to be constantly doing that. I think Zendaya was just talking about this in an interview. There's moments where you want a stylist because you want to look your best and you want the best opportunity and possibility, and there's moments where you're like "I'll dress myself, it's just a small event, I'll make it work. I'll make it work with what I have."

But yeah, I really wanted to put myself in a position where...why can't I like fashion? Why can't I do a photoshoot, and why can't I do a cover? I had a publicist, one of my first publicists...I said "I want to be the first to do something, like be on a cover of something like this!" And they straight out loud said "that's not going to happen." And I was like..."oh well, I mean maybe not overnight, but that should be the goal, we should work toward--"

And they were like "yeah, but we want to be realistic...and that's not gonna happen."

Cannot imagine being the person to tell THIS man he's never going to be on the cover of a magazine.

Harvey (continued): I realized, if people on your team are naysayers or they're not seeing the vision, those people aren't on your team. So unfortunately, I had to let them go, because if there's someone on your team who's already being toxic towards your vision, that's not the vision, that's not the vibe, that's not it. And so I'm glad to report that shortly after that we did get a cover! And then I was able to kind of show that off and be like, "it can be done!" You just have to find the right team and the right people who see your vision.

I think for so long it's just been easy to say no to people who don't fit the mold of Hollywood, and I'm not here to fit a mold. I'm here to break it.

Samantha: You're killin' it! You have no idea how many of these questions were just "when is he starting a fashion line?"

Harvey: I want to! I think right now I'm so focused on my main passion, which is acting, and I'm so grateful and blessed to have opportunities that are coming my way and that I am excited for. And now wrapping something that I'm gonna hold so dear to my heart like Shadows for so long, I'm so grateful. And you know, most actors would kill for just the opportunity to be on a show like Shadows and call it a day, and I would be happy if that's the work that I'm known for, because it's such a great show.

But I'm fortunate that I have all of these other things that are coming up. I'm so excited for the opportunities, and I'm excited for the different characters and different roles and different hats I get to put on.

But eventually that would definitely be an avenue that...I mean, it would definitely be on brand! You know? It would be so on brand to open a plus size line, especially because growing up I didn't see as many options for plus size people, period. But if there were, obviously the lean is for female clothing, and it was never for men at all. Like the options for a plus sized guy was like...screen t-shirts and jeans. And that's it!

Or it was always Big and Tall, where if you weren't tall you got stuck with a really short and stout kind of shirt. The measurements were always catered to "if you're big, you gotta be tall," and well, I don't know if that's true, but there was no in between. So that's a market that I would definitely want to look at. But for the time being I'm focusing on the acting part of it.

Samantha: Kelly wants to ask, "do you like any specific colors or patterns? Where are your tastes when you dress high fashion?"

Harvey: I used to be afraid of color a lot because I was always told if you're plus sized or bigger you'll amplify yourself. But I think you shouldn't be afraid of color. Last year, a year ago next month, at the Meta Gala I wore pink! That was all Christian Siriano from head to toe, and there was a wink there and a story behind it--if you know you know--why he and I chose the color pink for the Met Gala and who they were honoring and all of that. So I'm not afraid of color. I try to be very specific about the dimensions and where my leg cuts off or where it elongates my leg.

Harvey's now-iconic outfit from the 2023 Met Gala--whose theme was honoring Karl Lagerfeld--blended foundational style elements of Lagerfeld's most famous designs for Chanel with all the things Lagerfeld loudly hated throughout his life. Lagerfeld was infamous for making shitty comments about plus sized people, people of color, short men, and a host of other things. He also disliked the color pink. So Harvey showing up as himself and looking stunning wearing that glorious pink number was possibly the classiest shade ever thrown.

Harvey (continued): I've just been like the Christian Siriano poster boy this year! Which is a funny story because when I first approached him over a year ago for the Oscars, he was really busy and he said "I really don't make menswear."

And I was like "well I'm not saying I want you to make completely a tuxedo, I want you to do something in the middle." And he was like "well, I kind of did that with Billy Porter" where he put Billy in this really amazing gown. And I was like "well I don't want to do a gown, I want something between that, you know? Like where it doesn't have to be a traditional, boring, just plain old tuxedo, and it doesn't have to be this amazing, beautiful ball gown that Billy had worn."

Because he doesn't really design for men, he designs for women. And he said "this would be the first I would do this." And I said "then that's great! It'll be the first!" And he definitely had never designed for a plus sized man, so we were checking all these boxes off.

So my idea was if someone in 1920 went to an award show but was trying to wear a vintage Victorian or Edwardian outfit to honor a vintage look. So the hair was 1920s. The hair was done by Connie, who was my hair person in What We Do In the Shadows, who helped me originate the original look for Guillermo.

And Romie--who's my best friend since third grade--is my makeup artist, and she did my makeup for the Oscars and makeup for a lot of the events I go to.

And it was just amazing, you know. That outfit...oh my god. Vogue ran it, they got so many likes, it was on every social [media] outlet, and it did so well that last fall, for the first time, [Christian] had a men's line. And I can't help but wonder if it was a coincidence, if it had anything to do with my "how about we try this experiment!"

This beautiful vintage-inspired look for the Oscars was Harvey's first red carpet collaboration with Christian Siriano and landed him on nearly every best dressed list for the event. The metallic brocade tuxedo gown and bell hem trouser were included in Siriano's Fall 2023 line, and are available to order on his website (for a hefty price) as separate pieces in sizes up to a size 30 (58 bust, 60 waist).

Harvey (continued): Christian's been great, and of course he would make amazing pieces for menswear, of course he would!

We collaborated on a lot of things. For the Critic's Choice award we did a really cool cut, which was like a midriff cut with a peek-a-boo of belly. Because you know, I like my body, and I can show it off! And he did it in a way where I was like "woah!" It elongated my leg and it had a peek-a-boo of a little bit of tummy, and it had a neckline that plunges. So it shows your chest, and it's mesh, and then this giant bow on the side that you can take off or put on.

This red carpet look Harvey wore for the Critic's Choice Awards is one of my personal favorites. It feels like plus size people are always being urged to both cover up as much as possible and make ourselves as small as possible. But this outfit stares those demands in the face and says "Why though? Fuck that! Show yourself off and take up space!"

Harvey (continued): It got so many compliments on the carpet! And it's to a T a Christian look, but also very much me, because we collaborated in what that would look like and how I want that on my body, how it looks on my body, because what looks good on me may not look good on someone else. But it's knowing what your best assets are and what you're showing off, and what you want to show off. Because that's what's going to make you feel the most comfortable, when you're showing off something that you love about yourself.

Samantha: That's literally what I tell my clients! You feel the best you've ever looked in your life when everything just fits you perfectly and shows off the best parts of your body that you like the most. It's not about hiding, it's about amplifying.

Harvey: Yeah, exactly.

---

Thank you so much to both Samantha and Harvey for this wonderful conversation on IG Live! It was truly a joy to witness it and get more insight into Harvey's thoughts on fashion and style.

If you're interested in Samantha's designs (including her OFMD-themed makeup pallets!), check out her website here. And you can find WWDITS-themed Harvey-approved merch at his website here!

#fashion #harvey guillén #christian siriano #plus size fashion #menswear #red carpet looks #samantha rei

[childofmattel]

Vivi-Design EAH Fancast 2.0 (Pt.3)

I'm back from the dead. Sorry for being MIA for a while but I'm back now. I'm doing Pt.3 of my @vivi-designs EAH Recast.

Part 1: https://www.tumblr.com/childofmattel/735536666910015488/vivi-design-eah-fancast-20-pt-1

Part 2: https://www.tumblr.com/childofmattel/735638317217021952/vivi-design-eah-fancast-20-pt2

Part 4: https://www.tumblr.com/childofmattel/739542620483747840/vivi-design-eah-fancast-20-pt4

Part 5: https://www.tumblr.com/childofmattel/739611898471923712/vivi-design-eah-fancast-20-pt5

Anyways let's get to it.

Adara Lael as Holly O'Hair

I know her from this Christmas movie I was forced to watch. (I forgot the name) I think that she'd make an amazing Holly O'Hair but idk. I just really like this fancast even if the actress is a little underrated.

Loren Janae Poppy O'Hair

I'm glad I found actresses that were actually twins. I think she and her sister really match with Vivi's idea with them.

Siena Agudong as Cerise Hood

I was debating changing Cerise's FC but I feel like Siena Agudong is honestly the perfect fit. Idk if she's tall like Cerise is described to me but I don't think her height is the most pivotal role of her character.

Queenie Mae Villaluz as Ramona Badwolf

If you guys don't listen to Boys World (and you like Pop) you totally should, they're so good. I think Olivia Rodrigo matched vivi's Pinterest aesthetic of Ramona but I feel like overall Queenie fits as Rosabella Badwolf. Although she's not an actress I feel like she fits as Ramona.

Jack Pililaau as Tucker

I'm keeping the same fc for Tucker cuz why not.

Adrian Lyles as Sparrow Hood

I wanted to cast someone a little younger for Vivi-design's EAH because even though Bryant Barnes is a good FC I think he's a little too old to be playing a teenager even if it is just a fancast. If this were to actually be a live-action show I think Adrian Lyles would fit as Sparrow.

Hanni Pham as Duchess Swan

There needs to be more Vietnamese representation in Hollywood because it was not easy finding one. Hanni Pham is also a dancer like Duchess and even though she's not an actress I think look-wise she can portray Duchess.

Sean Kaufman as Hopper Croakington II

I think he looks a lot like the Hopper in vivi's art, although he doesn't have red hair which really doesn't matter.

Brianna Reed as C.A. Cupid

While scrolling through Cupid's pinterest I saw this picture and was like "automatically yes." Look at this picture and tell me this isn't a perfect Cupid.

Marsai Martin as Blondie Lockes

I saw on fancast on Tiktok and I haven't been able to get it out of mind. I just love the idea of Marsai as Blondie Lockes. And this picture with the blonde braids is stunning. She'd be a great Blondie.

Shahadi Wright Joseph as Cedar Wood

No changes. Shahadi Wright Joseph forever.

Maripaz Romero as Rosabella Beauty

Like vivi's Rosabella she has a prosthetic leg. Speaking of I just want to take a moment to appreciate all the rep Vivi-design's EAH has. I do love EAH but come to think of it -- it was really white so all this rep makes me happy.

Anyways that's part 3, again sorry for the long hiatus. For my Re-Cast I'm planning to do more parts, including one with the EAH character's parents.

#ever after high #eah #eah headcanons #eah fancast #ever after high fancast #holly o'hair #poppy o'hair #cerise hood #ramona badwolf #ramona wolf #merry men #tucker #sparrow hood #duchess swan #hopper croakington ii #c.a cupid #blondie lockes #cedar wood #rosabella beauty

[crispycreambacon]

I thought I'd share the sketch of this poster/book cover as well as my initial concepts! You can click the "Read More" button for more in-depth explanations on my design process.

Thhis is all for my latest fanfiction, Snip Snip, so if you'd like to check that out, then...

Now let's crack in!

For the release of "Snip Snip", I actually had several different directions in mind! One was a comic of one of the scenes from the fanfic—specifically the one where the Professor breaks down in front of Kate and Joyce with the line "I don't like being a woman"—and the other was a series of doodles showing the Professor's transition. Unfortunately, both directions met dead ends as I couldn't find the motivation to do either. The most progress I made were these sketches.

If you're wondering, "The first one looks familiar..." that's because I reused that pose for my first promo art! It was too good of a pose. I couldn't waste it :P

But anyways, after a period of getting extremely frustrated over the lack of progress, I realized my main problem: I was biting off more than I could chew. I didn't know this at the time, but I was dealing with burnout from school assignments that made drawing more ambitious ideas like the ones I had very difficult. Hence, I had to scale it down. It made me think, "Why not do something like a movie poster or a book cover?"

That's how the sketches at the top of the post came to be! I consulted a friend of mine over which pose to choose, and he picked the third one which I understand why so. The obscuring of the Professor's face not only made it cool, but it adds symbolism in how we don't really see his true identity—the real him—until his transition. Here's the first sketch!

As you can see, the title is on the top left corner! However, I moved it to the bottom for two reasons

It's advice I learnt while looking up how to make movie posters since moving the title to the bottom tends to bring more focus to the illustration above.

I couldn't find a font that fits! And the idea of doing typography again (especially after the Keep Yourself Safe poster...) was really not what I signed up for.

But then it left the problem of the top corner looking empty. It was too distracting! So what did I fill it in with? The subtitle: This is their story. The composition is now more balanced, and also the subtitle tickles me.

As I said before, I looked up movie posters for this! Special thanks to the Nashville Film Institute and Muse by Clio for their articles that guided me during this poster making process. I will say though I got really sidetracked watching Filmmaker IQ's The History of the Hollywood Movie Poster 😭 It's really interesting, I'd recommend watching it!

One thing I learnt is that movie posters limit their colour palettes. Of course, this is good advice for art in general, but movie posters emphasize on its colour usage to attract the audience with their simple yet bold schemes. It is a piece of advertisement after all! Following their footsteps, I limited my colours to the primary colours (red, yellow, blue) and purple to make the scissors pop and allude to the nonbinary flag colour scheme.

And from there, it was just a matter of experimenting with rendering! I wanted a mix of pop art and storybook illustrations, so I mixed lineart with lineless, and I wanted to retain the energy of the sketch while still polishing it, so I cleaned the sketch, merged it with the colours, and painted on top of it rather than make a separate lineart layer.

Overall, I'm extremly proud of the end result! The struggle of figuring out the promo art for this fic has been tormenting me since the beginning of the year, so I'm glad to bring it to an end. Thank you for reading my ramblings! I hope you learnt something or at least had fun? Either way, have a good day!!

#this truly has been a rambles moment #i really really recommend watching that video by the way it is FASCINATING #the professor #shane madej #puppet history #poster design #art process #design process #art #artists on tumblr #sketches #concept art #chris p fried rambles #chris p fried art

[anhed-nia]

I'm sorry about this post. It's really long and I don't know if I had a point to make! But I didn't realize I was maybe just torturing myself and others until I was neck deep in it, and now I feel obligated to post it due to sunk cost fallacy. Sorry again. I guess this is how you find out who your real friends are.

In the pursuit of my masochistic project of understanding the enduring Phantom of the Opera phenomenon, last night I spontaneously went to a rep screening of Joel Schumacher's Oscar-nominated 2004 adaptation. This was a singalong audience participation type of thing, which I would usually avoid at all costs especially for something I have no emotional investment in, but it was just too strange that it was randomly happening while I'm in the middle of this assignment, so I went! We all got fake roses and Phantom masks and rubber bracelets that say OPERA GHOST and little artificial candles to light up during the big chandelier scenes, and there was a singing contest before the movie started and I almost had a panic attack, but I managed to maintain my sense of humor. Apparently the climate control was totally broken and it was oppressively hot in the house, to the point that I wound up sitting there in a painted-on Uniqlo undershirt for most of the movie, and I couldn't bring myself to get dressed again for about half an hour after it was over. I walked down to the bar attached to the theater where the queen running their drag bingo night and the bartender were laughing about how they should leave the heat blasting because everyone was buying a lot more drinks. The bartender quizzed us drinkers about which theaters were we in and were they hot; I said "This is not an outdoor shirt!" and everyone laughed. I'm so glad I wasn't wearing a weird bra.

Anyway.

It would be too much to say I had high hopes for the Schumacher PHANTOM, but I had a certain amount of optimism about it; he seemed like a really good choice for this irredeemably kitschy product, but the truth is that the movie is completely neutered. It really needed some of that BATMAN FOREVER juice, but the whole thing just has no energy. Apparently Andrew Lloyd Webber had "complete creative control" and I think it really shows, it's very limp and undistinguished, and simultaneously pretentious and stupid. Sometimes things can be described as "lavish" because they are so exquisitely realized, and sometimes they are "lavish" on account of the fact that they are just extremely busy, even though no single detail rises to the surface as memorable or remarkable. Even the chandelier, which is as much a staple of this story as the mask, is just not that impressive. There it is, a big old chandelier, it's round and it's shiny and you know exactly what's going to happen to it.

Any comparison with the 1925 Lon Chaney version is inevitably unflattering; the costumes are bad, the staging is boring--I mean there is just no excuse for a big Hollywood production to NOT go ham on the masquerade ball, WTF?!--and of course, the Phantom himself is really uninspiring. The most important part of any Phantom iteration is the unmasking, and this movie has TWO (2) whole unmasking scenes and both of them suck! We all know that no Phantom design has been remotely as good as Chaney's nearly 100-year old version, but still, Joel Schumacher has worked on movies with some really freaky makeup effects, he should have given us something better than this. The whole thing just feels like they were trying as hard as possible not to surprise or offend anyone. I blame ALW.

I see this image and I hear wind whistling through their ears.

The problem with the unmasking sceneS here (besides the lack of visual impact) is that they both feel really unmotivated. Actually, this is almost ALWAYS a problem. It's the biggest moment in the story and you shouldn't be asking yourself WHY it is happening. Plus, the reason why it is happening lies with the heroine Christine, and if your main character's motivations for doing something so outrageous are unclear or uncompelling, then your whole story is in trouble. As a viewer you can tell yourself that she does it because she is overwhelmed by curiosity, or overpowered by a compassionate urge to see the Phantom as he is, or that she sees the unmasking as a way of defanging her captor...but you shouldn't have to tell yourself all that stuff. The movie should tell you. And who the fuck is Christine anyway, shouldn't we know? In other versions Christine is so devoted to her career that she readily sacrifices her love life and embraces the absurdity of a sort of spirit of opera communicating with her and guiding her path. Some versions dramatize the conflict between her monastic commitment to opera and her desire for real relationships. In the AWL version, Christine is chiefly devoted to getting attention. She falls in love, from minute to minute, with anyone who looks at her long enough. She's in love with her dead dad, so she's just frantically in search of a living boyfriend and she seems pretty indiscriminate about it. It's kind of gross and pathetic and it makes it really hard to care about her or the burning question of which boyfriend will she choose.

I've never said this before in my entire life, but Minnie Driver is the best thing in this movie--followed by the old queens who take over the theater, followed by all of the bit players, followed by, at the very bottom, the main cast. None of the leads are really inspired casting choices, but it's hard to blame them for their output because there is nothing they could possibly do with such empty roles. Who is Christine? The girl who has to pick a boyfriend. Who is Raoul? The guy who wants to be Christine's boyfriend. Who is the Phantom? The other guy who wants to be Christine's boyfriend. I mean there's this brief, grotesque excuse made for what the Phantom's problem is, but it comes far too late and explains too little. It just boils down to ye olde "not getting laid drives you nuts, so we should be afraid of ugly people." There are no personalities to be found here, and casting generically pretty actors of no distinction really hurt things in the characterization department.

Full disclosure though: I'm very faceblind. I have a lot of trouble identifying actors, and sometimes I can't even tell people apart within one movie. So, because I didn't look up very much about this production going in, I was sitting there for at least 90 solid minutes constantly thinking:

Is that Patrick Wilson? That's Patrick Wilson. It is, right? Patrick? Wilson? Yeah no it definitely is. Like for sure. Right? PaTRICK? WILson??? Pa.........Wi........

At a certain point after I finally accepted that it was probably him I just started laughing every time I saw him. But to be totally fair to ME, this presentation barely resembles a real live person:

And that hair is unacceptable. I'm sorry, Patrick Wilson. It's not your fault. I really liked the INSIDIOUS sequel you directed even though no one else did, so I'm sure we can be special friends.

The main effect of the Schumacher/ALW PHANTOM was...making me really aware of how much I like the Menahem Golan one with Robert Englund. Really! I thought I didn't like it. I know I saw it when I was young, when I had major league Freddy Kreuger fever (worse than now, somehow), so it would seem like if it didn't get its hooks in me then, it never would. But now that I have sat through...many Phantom iterations, I have become aware that it is genuinely one of the better attempts on the story. It has a lot of personality! It's trashy and juicy and a lot of fun. It even looks pretty good sometimes! I fondly remember specific costume details, which I cannot say about the big expensive ALW one. I'm not here to tell you that it's a great example of cinema or something, but it is vastly more entertaining than much of what's been done with this story by more reputable people. You'd think it would be hampered by the lack of a proper mask, but the gory unmasking scene is spectacular, AND it gets around the question of why Christine unmasks the Phantom which has not been answered satisfactorily by almost any movie. I was pining for the Englund edition for all 2.5 hours of this ALW debacle. I was even pining for Jill Schoelen as Christine! Not that I have a problem with Jill Schoelen, she's very charming. It's just that I hate POPCORN, which she stars in and which is itself a kind of Phantom adaptation. I'm not watching it again, though, no matter what. My agita.

#i'm sorry about this post #but there's nothing i can do about it now #someday this project will be over

[imthepunchlord]

i see the wave of nope posts. did you watch the movie? I rmb liking the movie and would love to hear about your thoughts if you did watch them. on that note, any horror movie recs? 👀

I did watch Nope, it's one of the few horror films I wanted to watch, and I was waiting for my sister and dad to be available to watch it with me, which was last night.

And it was good. It is definitely my sort of horror film, where it is a horror movie, but that horror isn't in the forefront. It's like a roller coaster, where it will go through the horror scenes, but then move on to focus on something else. And for me who isn't a big fan of horror, that is just how I like it. I can do with feeling scared or dread in segments, but I don't want to sit through a whole film feeling that.

It's actually why a lot of Mike Flanagan's shows I can watch and look forward to them, they are horror shows and have horror elements, but it's not the forefront, it's the people and the setting.

Which is the same for Nope, it being more about the people, the struggles of working with Hollywood, while also dealing with that dangerous mystery. Which, for anyone who hasn't watched it yet but wants to, spoilers ahead.

The idea that the UFO being a living creature and sucking up living beings is interesting, and they wound up having a very interesting design in the end, kinda jellyfish vibes, which is fitting as jellyfish are terrifying. Like, if it ever came to it, I'd rather swim near a great white shark than a jeyllyfish. So it becoming something like a jellyfish was fitting in terms of visuals and quality of terrifying for me. I also really liked the detail of it spitting up blood, cause you see it spitting up metal, and blood has iron in it, so makes sense it can't digest blood.

And oh man, getting that scene of the people inside of it, getting to see them being swallowed up and gradually digested, I think that scared and shook me the most in the whole film. Even though you couldn't see in full detail what was happening to them, I had to look away. It's one of the two scenes that genuinely scared me, and it was so haunting that when JJ flies around, you can still hearing all those people screaming. And it clicks for you then that when you hear it in the distance and it sounds like people screaming, that tells you that it had eaten more people. And man, that scene stuck with me enough that when I went to bed, I had to fight my thoughts from circling back to it cause I didn't want to risk dreaming about it.

The other aspect that scared me in this film was when they circled back to Gordy. Chimps are terrifying, I hope to never get near one cause I know how brutal they can be. And this is one of the few movies that addresses it, and Hollywood's relationship with using animals. So, yeah, Gordy was terrifying, and I felt for Jupe in those scenes. I can just imagine how terrifying it is to be there, getting to see what this chimp did to the people you work with, an animal you didn't think could hurt a fly. And well... And man, it also hits the last terrifying effect of Gordy when you got to see his surviving co star and what Gordy had done to her.

Yeah, Gordy and seeing the inside of JJ were the two most terrifying aspects of this movie for me.

I do love though that this movie made me laugh, OJ was great as a lead, I loved the scene of him in the car, and peeking out to see JJ above and he just closed the door with a "Nope". And gosh, he's a brave man. Em was a lot of fun, and I really liked Angel, and I'm glad all of them survived. Also, Lucky was well named, cause damn, that is one lucky horse. The only one to not get swallowed with every encounter with JJ. Kudos Lucky.

As for horror recs, I don't have a lot for you cause I don't go out of my way to watch horror. And most recs I have are most likely already seen, but I'll share my small list just in case.

Anything made by Mike Flanagan is good.

Jurassic Park, and for World, the most horror of it was Battle at Big Rock (you can watch on Youtube, it's scary), and s3 of Camp Cretaceous.

Alien and Aliens was really good.

Primal has some scary episodes, be aware though that it's a very gore heavy show.

And of course Stranger Things has some good horror elements to it.

And... at this time, I can't think of anything else I've watched that really counts as horror or has horror elements. Out of all genres it is the one I watch the least.

#ask Punchie #nope

[destinyc1020]

can I say a confession. I kinda lost all my interest in the MCU not even the prospect of zendaya and tom returning in sm4 is exciting to me obviously I would eat up a press tour but not the movie. I dont post end game this MCU has been rather flat and dull. No hate to people who love the MCU, I really hope the MCU delivers yall some magical stuff. Its just watching other major blockbusters and seeing their quality like top gun or mad max or dune or spiderverese like Im reminded at what cinema can be when creators are given time and freedom to build their own worlds and create unique moments story telling or when we see great cinematigraphy and sound design.

Like Im glad I opened myself to see smaller things or films I've never thought I would watch like poor things, american fiction, la chimera, all of us strangers, past lives and just being transported and experiencing something amazing and emotional and feeling rewarded as an audience member. I dont know I feel like mcu is kinda lagging behind and I feel lile audiences deserve better products and the MCU just dont deliver anymore.

Thanks for your confession Anon. 😊

Idk if you meant for me to hold this "Confession" off until Sunday so that you could have immunity lol 😆, but I saw this posted to my inbox yesterday, and it didn't say to hold off from posting until Sunday, so I assume you wanted me to post it. 🤷🏾‍♀️ If I misunderstood, I apologize.

Anyway.....

I'm definitely a self-proclaimed "Marvel Girl" (always have been 😊), but I also love DC comics as well. I'm not one of those who feels like fans HAVE to choose btwn one or the other. 👀

With that said, Marvel to me is like the fun, exciting, "junk food" of cinema. Like eating junk food, watching Marvel movies is fun to digest, it's enjoyable, it's exciting, you feel GREAT while watching it, and you can't wait until you see some other new films coming out.

But, you can't exist SOLELY on junk food and be healthy, just like if you're truly a fan of film, you can't ONLY watch Marvel films and be 100% satisfied in your movie-viewing life. 🤷🏾‍♀️ You need a balance.

It sounds like you're definitely a fan of film, and you watch a variety of stuff. That's awesome! 😃 👍🏾☺️

While I love Marvel, I too have noticed that some of their more recent films have left some fans a little disappointed, and just feeling a little "Marvel Fatigue".

I honestly think that they got worried that after they killed off most of the OG Avengers, that fans would lose interest, and so they started just churning out more and more films and series in order to put out the "next phase". But in all honesty, I kinda feel like after NWH and Wakanda Forever came out, I sort of feel like Marvel should have taken a little bit of a BREAK, and allowed the fans to miss them (sometimes, absence makes the heart grow fonder), and really taken their TIME in writing better films going forward after resting for a few years. 👀

Cuz you're right, some films are feeling a little sloppy and rushed, and honestly, when you compare some of the newer Marvel films to films like "The Dark Knight" , or even "The Batman", or shooot.... even "Spider-man 2" lol 😆, you can kind of see the STARK difference. (No pun intended lol)

Obviously, Marvel films aren't going to be like "Poor Things" or "All of Us Strangers", so I wouldn't even compare them to those types of films rofl 🤣

But yea, like when you even compare some of the Marvel films to a movie like "Top Gun: Maverick" (which was AWESOME and brought back old school style Hollywood filmmaking), you can tell the immediate difference in how you feel when watching it, the writing, the cinematography, the MUSIC, everything....

I think Marvel reigned Supreme for many many years (over a decade), and so maybe they got lazy or felt that MORE content more OFTEN was "better", but I actually think the opposite. 👀 🤷🏾‍♀️

#sorry for the dissertation

[dream-underscore-journal]

Ok I had a long dream. I slept all day cuz I got vertigo and the only way to make it stop oftentimes is going back to sleep. Anyway so it started with me and my husband going to visit my childhood bestie and her husband at their house. They had a nice two story and she was driving us. She pointed out a tornado in the distance but it was moving so we were like ummm it's prolly ok but let's get to the house quickly. So we get there and we're hanging out in the couch talking when the tornado starts getting close and we shuffle downstairs. At first me and her husband hide in a weird little corner bathroom and we're trying to convince my husband and her to come to us but my husband was too scared and my old bestie (gonna call her Autumn for the sake of brevity) wanted to stay out with her dog in her arms.

So the tornado hits and we get flung into like different places. Autumn and I got thrown into the same place. It was like an alternate world where her parents were rich dickheads who lived in some weird fancy house that was in a strip mall?? Like a nice one, if anyones been in a rich suburb think their strip malls. It was like we my brain needs a quick way to change plots. So I was staying over and she and her mom had this weird hair thing? So the best way to describe it is like these earrings I own that are pretty long and dangly with sharp pendulum-like ends. But that was the strands of their hair? And the mom kept complaining about it and ig autumn and I shared a bed and cuddled and I kept accidentally poking them into her skin. When I asked the mom about the hair she was super vague about where they came from, getting a thousand yard stare. Then me and autumn went to the window to see some guy being mean to a dog. We called the cops and went down to watch when the cops caught him and then the two of us flew out of there. Cuz if human flight was possible. We flew around some mountains and an ice world like in a video game that would build itself if you stood on top of some incomplete spots. We got caught up in a story about this lady doing good stuff around town, like she was apparently there chasing down the dog abuser guy. And then the dog abuser guy came back and argued with her on the street. Something something I accidentally scratched autumns mom's car like a teeny tiny scratch but she got pissed off and I threw down my purse and was like "do something to my Kate Spade (which I don't actually own and also that purse was in NO WAY a Kate Spade design-wise) to make up for it" and she shot it with a lampoon??? And really honestly missed she just got the tip of the lampoon in the zipper. But whatever she was like " I can't just destroy anything cuz comparing that purse with my care is implying we're an Old Navy family!! " And I was like " no no I wasn't saying that at all"

Fuckin rich people I'm glad I don't live near them anymore so anyway

I don't remember much now since I woke up but we flew around watching that main character lady, autumns parents were being rich dickheads, and then I broke off to see what would happen next. I went up a spoiler mountain only to find the main character lady was actually evil the whole time, pretending to be good to fool her new found friends a d would throw them off the cliffs and I was like this ending sucks I'm fuckin leaving. Then I flew to that ice world. Cuz I really hated that I remember thinking to myself "stupid Hollywood and having to have these stupid fucking twists that don't make any sense"

#dream diary #dream journal #dreams

[liquid-luck-00]

WonderBug

Angst Edition

Diana Prince (Wonder Woman) x Marinette Dupain-Cheng (Ladybug)

I am late. SO, so , so late but here it is

1: Soulmates @maribat-angst-fluff-april

My partner is the wonderful @thedragonbug

Ao3

Fuffy Edition

Soulmates exist, and Marinette hates hers. You see everyone is born with their half or part of a complete soul mark. The other parts would appear when you were closer to your soulmate and be permanent when they were close emotionally. For everyone, the appearance or 'drawing' of the mark was light and warm. But not for her, no her drawing was heavy and hot, like a hot knife digging into her arm.

Her parents knew this, and it was concerning, to know that their child was in pain because of their soulmate. Seeing as the marks were not supposed to be painful. Yet as there was no good reason given by medical and mark professionals, and the fact that her soulmate didn't stay near her for long there was nothing that they could do. They did tell her that few, this phenomenon affects one in a million people and she was just lucky enough to be one of them.

Over the years she grew used to the pain, but every time she did it would come back even stronger than the last. She slowly hated her mark and in turn her soulmate. Marinette would cover her mark, ignore it, even wish it away. All her soulmate did was bring her pain. Sure, it upped her pain tolerance, but it hurt her still.

When she turned fourteen, she became Ladybug. She then recognized that her mark was actually the wire of her yo-yo.

The first time Chat Noir claimed they were soulmates she broke down in tears. luckily for her he told her during patrol and not an attack.

"We aren't soulmates, Chat, and I'm glad we aren't." She nearly whispered.

"Why Bug?"

"Because I hate my soulmate, and I don’t want to ever hate you."

"Why would you hate your soulmate?" He seemed genuinely curious. But no one outside her parents knew, not a single person knew what happens to her.

"Because it hurts when they are close, it hurts so badly. The drawing is painful. I never want to meet the person who keeps hunting me." Tears formed in her eyes and Chat hugged her.

"I'm not your soulmate, then." She shook her head. "Good thing I'm your partner, and Plagg help me I am going to be your best friend. Got that Bugaboo?"

A half-hearted chuckle and a small smile escaped her. "Sounds good Kitty." The first person she has ever told, the person who was convinced that they were soulmates, cares for her, to help alleviate some of her pain.

The two became inseparable after that, to the point that most of Paris believed they were in a relationship.

When Nadia asked them about it during an interview, their reactions were memorable. Both all but gagged, turned to face each other, and then laughed almost falling out of the seats.

"I believe we have missed the joke." Nadia commented, worried, and confused.

"Why would I date my sister?"

"Sister?"

"Ladybug and I consider each other siblings in all but blood."

"Everything between us is simply platonic, not even close to romantic.” Ladybug answered after Chat.

“Then why would the whole of Paris believe you to be soulmates?” She may be good at hiding her pain, but the question must have made her react slightly, or Chat knew how sensitive the topic was to her.

“We aren’t soulmates, not the bonded ones that everyone thinks of.” He began. “We are the holders of the black cat and ladybug respectively because our souls resonate with the miraculous. Sure, they are two parts of a whole, but we are practically twins, two halves of coin. She is the sister I choose, she is my partner, and that is our relationship.”

“He’s completely right, now I think it’s time for us to start our patrol, BugOut!” Her smile now in place and their excuse to leave perfectly timed and respectful they made their exit.

They went on their patrol as normal, except just as they arrived at the Eiffel Tower to end the patrol. She was about to land on the platform when a searing pain flashed and radiating affecting her entire body blinding her momentarily. A single moment caused her to collapse on the tower landing, crumpling on the platform.

“LB!” Her breath came out in short bursts, she was clutching her upper arm eyes squeezed shut. This was the worst it has ever happened before, and she wanted it to end. As soon as the cause of pain came it disappeared. Leaving only the memory and a phantom pain.

"Just give me a minute." She slowly got her breathing under control, starting to get accustomed to the new level of pain.

"You weren't kidding that is the worst I’ve ever seen you hurt."

"Yeah not fun."

---

A month after that her mark burned again. This time during class. The teachers knew she would randomly stop due to pain, but they were told they were random migraines. To the point Mari would hold her head and rub her arm to sooth herself, while playing up a headache. Adrien stayed back after the class let out." You know you don't always need to put on a brave face Bugaboo."

Her attention snapped to him. "Well it's easier than constantly answering questions Kitty." She figured quickly.

Sure, they found out one another's identity, but that worked in their favor. After Tikki got sick, Fu started training Mari, and after a month Marinette was given guardianship. Fu still hasn’t lost his memories because Mari let Wayzz stay with him, for the time being, he eventually returns it to Mari in order to move on with his life, his memories fading gradually.

When Adrien got his hands on the grimoire, he of course showed it to Marinette.

“Kitty I know you don’t want to hear this, but I think your dad might be Hawkmoth.” This seemed to perfect for him to have without him being a villain.

“I know, but…”

“Adrien is there any motive anything that might be what he would wish for?”

“My mom. Dad closed himself off when she disappeared. I bet he would wish for her back.”

“Okay, so I’m going to be blunt okay.” He nodded. “So, if your mom is dead there isn’t anything that can be done without the wish, meaning at least one other person is dying.”

“So…”

“But if she is anything but.” She flipped through the grimoire recalling the studies she’s did with Fu. “There are ways we can find or even heal her.”

“This is all riding on an if.” He looked unsure as if this was too much to accept.

“Do you trust me?”

“If I didn’t, I would have turned tail and run a long time ago.”

“You dork.” She lightly shoved him, but he swayed dramatically.

“You two are close.” The new student in their class came up to them.

“Lila, right?”

“That’s right.” She answered sickly sweet, almost fake. “Are you two soulmates by any chance?”

“No.” Adrien answered. “Why?”

“You’re Adrien Agreste! Why would you be in public school?” She finally seemed to recognize.

“Let’s just say it’s a bit of rebellion.” He chuckled.

“We’re still on for video games, right?” She brought up to end the conversation seeing that Adrien was getting uncomfortable.

“Your winning streak is going down.” He announced.

“You want to join us, Lila?” She offered.

“Why?”

“Because your new and I want to get to know you.” Marinette answered honestly.

“Why?”

“Because we know you lied but still want to know you, the real you.” Adrien added.

“Why?” She asked suspiciously now.

“Question! Is it a felony to kidnap her to play video games, have snacks, get to know her, then let her go?”

“Well the kidnapping part is but if she goes willingly, I call that a hangout session.” Adrien mused.

“True, true.” She hummed. “So, what do you say, because now I am determined to get to know you.”

“Wh…”

“Kidnapping it is.” Adrien decided and grabbed the new girl’s wrist pulling her out of the library. Mari picking up their bags.

Lila herself wasn’t too bad once she started telling the truth, lying is a coping mechanism she created, because she is constantly moving schools, cities, and even countries. She is pretty interesting when she isn’t exaggerating. She was on a Hollywood movie set, but she was there on accident, she was looking for the bathroom in a restaurant and they were filming there that day. She did save a kitten on a tarmac once, but one it wasn’t Jagged Stones, it was a kitten who spooked out of their carrier and rushed down the stairs. Lila dove and caught it before it could leave the passenger unloading area to get the tram to the airport. (Some small airports unload passengers in a certain area of the tarmac and either shuttle them to the building or have a sectioned of walkway that is cleared for passengers, to walk back in only.)

After almost two hours Lila left for home when Adrien’s father called, and he was angry. Together she and Adrien ran back to the Agreste Mansion.

“Adrien!” Gabriel came out disheveled and slightly panicked. “And Miss Dupain-Cheng.” He slightly composed himself.

“Sorry I kept him.” She apologized. “He showed me this really cool book and you know how it is when inspiration hits.”

“Ah yes the inspiring fashion designer friend.” Adrien had walked up and handed his father the grimoire.

“It’s quite an interesting spell book.”

“You can read it?”

“Yes, I can. (Come on out little butterfly.)” Nooroo flew out from his hiding spot. “Hello kwamii of transmission and to you as well Hawkmoth.” She was calm deathly calm.

“How?!” Gabriel growled.

“Calm down. I have a question for you first. You want the jewels used by Ladybug and Chat Noir, why?”

“Would my answer change your plan of action to urn me into authorities and to the heroes?”

“My response may change, but you’ll have to answer to find out.”

“My wife wielder the peacock miraculous, it is broken, and she fell ill, and is in a comatose state.”

“Ah! So here is what is going to happen.” She took the grimoire from Gabriel and flipped over pages. “There is a way to revive her without resorting to using the wish.”

“How do you know this?”

She simply smiled. “You mind gathering these ingredients please Adrien?” She text him a list.

“Sure.”

“How do I know that this isn’t a ruse?”

“One I hate liars, and two because all magic has a cost, and this way is less than if you were to use the wish.”

“What do you mean cost?”

“Just like using your transformation wears on the kwamii, and the power affects your limit. Magic has its cost. The wish because it will always rewrite reality, the price is steep. Bringing back one life means you lose at minimum one other person from your life most likely more.”

“And this?”

“From what I understand. Everyone involved in the spell will have their energies deprecated so they will sleep for a day to a week.”

“Randomly?”

“No, the more people the less each person sleeps.”

“Here they are!” Adrien burst back in the room.

“Do you have the peacock miraculous?” Gabriel nodded. “Okay we’ll need that first, so lead the way to the kitchen.” Both men shuffled confused. “You do know where the kitchen is right?”

“Um well find it eventually.” Adrien chuckled. They were lucky and form it easily and Gabriel left while she and Adrien began to individually brew two separate potions. Adrien the more complex one for his mother’s revival. And she did the simpler one to fix the miraculous. Sue her Adrien is the better one in chemistry, sure he can’t cook to save himself, but he has a gift for chem, and Tikki help her she will teach him to cook. It’s practically edible chemistry, right?!

She took the Brock from Gabriel and fixed it, allowing Duusu out. “Okay so who is going to do this?”

“We will,” Adrien answered for himself and his Father, who nodded.

“Please let be help as well.” Miss Sancoeur offered.

Nooroo, Duusu, Tikki, and Plagg (they came out of hiding now) came to her. “We can help.”

She nodded and saw that Gabriel and Natalie were staring wide eyed between her and Adrien. She thought she heard Natalie say, ‘That explains so much’ but she isn’t sure.

Long story short they were able to wake up Emile, but she took back the peacock and butterfly, leaving Plagg with Adrien. Funnily enough the Agreste’s became a second family to her, once Gabriel finally grasped how to be a father. They told Paris that they had found Hawkmoth, but he would be tried by the order of Miraculous, meaning he would be stripped of the gem and his memories of the miraculous erased. It was a lie but Tikki told her that was what would have happened. There was some outcry, but they explained that they would have no recollection of it, and it wouldn’t make sense to try them.

The next few years of her life were blissfully normal, aside from the fact she had a contract under the Gabriel brand as the designer MDC, who was also endorsed by Style Queen. Chloe isn’t as bad as she puts on when she isn’t masking the hurt of being constantly ignored and bought by her parents.

- - -

It wasn’t until she was twenty-two and accompanying Adrien to a Wayne charity gala, one he didn’t want to go alone and two she was invited anyways, Chloe, Kagami, and Luka were also there on their own merits and invitations so they all stuck relatively together. Since arriving there Marinette was a constant pain, her arm burned and ached, but she forced herself to simply breathe and tried her hardest to push it out of her mind. But her luck wouldn’t hold, three hours into the event she was approached by who she recognized as Bruce Wayne, the host of the gala, and a woman to his left, the pain was almost unbearable the closer the two approached. Her friends noticed, they knew what her pain actually meant, as she opened up to them about it after a while, but she grit her teeth and tried to push through it.

“Mr. Agreste, Miss Bourgeois It is good to see you both again.” Bruce Wayne acknowledged. “It’s nice to meet all of you as well, Bruce Wayne.” He introduced to the rest, shaking hands. “And this is a good friend of mine.”

“Diana Prince.” She also went to shake everyone’s hands and had left Marinette for the last. The moment their hands touched she almost crumpled, she shrunk back and into Adrien and Chloe. “Is she okay?”

“Diana?” Bruce pointed towards her upper arm, the mark most of them overlooked before was now complete and glowing lightly. What Marinette remembered was that there was her yo-yo string and a golden rope that she only saw once before on her own arm. She felt sick, Diana was staring at her now, she recognized that Marinette was her soulmate.

“Melody?” Luka now stepped up.

“I want to leave.” She answered flatly.

“You are…”

She completely turned away, but by now her friends knew what was going on and were glaring at Diana. “I want to leave, now.” She repeated.

“Come on bug, let’s get you away from… this.” He threw a look at Diana, who was looking confused and seemingly alarmed.

The other three were putting as much space as they could between their friend and who is unknowingly causing her pain.

“Please is she alright?” Diana asked stepping forward barely grazing her hand covering her mark. This time it felt as if the skin itself was burning and stung almost like it was being pricked over and over and over again.

“Don’t touch me and stay away from me.” On the outside she looks clam and relaxed, but her voice was soft and raw, her eyes burned in pain. “You and that completed mark can stay far from me.”

“Luka, Kagami mind taking her back to the house?” The two in question led her away and once a safe distance away she broke down in tears, sobbing from the pain she was biting down.

- - -

The two that stayed were simultaneously glaring at her and watching their friends leave the gala.

“Is she alright?” Bruce finally bole the tension.

“As soon as she is far enough away from her.” The girl, Chloe, snapped at her. “Now that we know who is the the person causing her pain, we can keep her from them.” She snapped towards her, but it was a slap to Diana.

“I don’t follow. We are…”

“Soulmates, yeah we figured.” Adrien this time spoke.

“They why would she want to leave, without speaking?”

“One one in a million people are in pain when they are close to their soulmates.” Adrien spoke calmly but stoically. “No one knows why.” He began to fidget with a ring on hi# finger, she couldn’t recall if she saw any jewelry on her soulmate, Marinette, but she has a suspicion. After all she feels similar to her Mother’s aura and presence, that of a Ladybug.

“You are wrong. There is an explanation, but only a few know why that is.” She feels certain that she knows what this is.

“Let me guess you know why.” Chloe remarked, sarcastically and unamused.

“Allow me to explain this another time and place, as this is neither.”

“Fine call this number at noon est tomorrow.” Adrien handed her a phone number and the two turned and left.

“Diana?” Bruce snapped her attention. “What was that about?” He was still calm and collected but she knew he would be the one to ask, figuring out what was the next step, what had the best options of success.

“Magic.”

- - -

The next day she called the number and she was invited to a video call by the recipient. It turned out to be Marinette.

“Hello Diana.” Her voice was not cold but it was emotionless, as if she was forced into this conversation. Granted she did think she would be speaking with Adrien and Chloe.

“I never wanted to harm you, I swear that on the river Styx.” she began but before she could continue Marinette cut in.

“Let’s be clear, I don’t care about your apologies. I just want to know why this is happening and how to either get rid of it or to never have contact with you in any way or proximity.”

“I am apologizing because this is known as the curse of the ladybug and black cat.” She saw the young woman tense at that. “The reason I know of this is from by Mother, Queen Hippolyta Of the Amazon’s.” She allowed that to sink in and the other woman allowed her to drop her defense, nodding to what is said.

“When you say the curse of the ladybug and black cat what do you mean by that?”

“True souls of the miraculous, when in their life they come into contract with their given gems, cause a reaction.” Diana explained. “For the ladybug they receive the pain of their soulmate through their marks. Which is what I assume is going on.”

“Yes you’re right, but this has been going ever since I could remember.”

“Call it what you will fate, destiny, but you were always going to wield the ladybug jewel, that is why the curse manifested itself.”

“What about the black cat?”

“I am unsure, the black cat of my Mother’s time died before meeting their soulmate, but I would assume it would be similar to our situation.”

“Then how do we solve this?”

~~~~~~~~~~

Permanent Taglist: @itsmeevie01 @adrestar @miraculouspenta @vixen-uchiha @animegirlweeb @jumpingjoy82 @thedragonbug@astoriaandroses @icerosecrystal @t1dwarrior-of-earth @moon5606 @zalladane

#maribat #dc x miraculous #dc x mlb #mlb x dc #miraculous x dc #mlb x mcu #mdcu marinette #mdcu adrien #mdcu wonder woman #wonderbug #wonder woman x marinette #maribat angst and fuff #maribatangstandfuff

[whatever-souls-are-made-of]

I saw Eternals last night and oh boy oh boy do I have feelings about it.

So I've seen criticisms about the pacing of the film and how it felt draggy or boring at times but I sat through MoS and BvS so in good faith I cannot say I was ever bored during my first watch of Eternals. If anything I actually needed the moments of quiet and extended transitions to help me process whatever the last scene had thrown at me. There was a lot of information to absorb throughout the whole movie and it helped to stop me from getting confused. The film's score is fucking superb (of course it is, it's Ramin fucking Djawadi) and the cinematography and costumes are beautiful and engaging. You can just absolutely tell a woman directed this film and it works so well.

*Spoilers begin*

I love characters. Holy fuck do I love characters. Ensemble movies are really hard to do justice to but even moreso when the entire ensemble is brand new characters. Cloe Zhao had to make us love an entire 10+ character cast in like two hours and at least for me she succeeded.

I loved Thena so much; the powerhouse tank goddess of war suffering from celestial android PTSD that winds up being the key to the truth about the Eternals themselves was AMAZING. Her partnership with Gilgamesh and how he cared for her and protected her so perfectly while still retaining his own unique personality was perfect; I loved them the way I loved Aquaman's parents. His death was the one to actually get to me and half of that was Angelina Jolie's acting in that scene really selling it to me.

Every single second Kingo is on screen after the timeskip is literally the best. I love his presence as a character and how believable he is as an entire dynasty of Bollywood movie stars. He's entertaining as fuck but still deep and intriguing as a character and I'm very excited to see more from him.

Druig is probably my favorite Eternal by personality and design alone; the fact that he was the first Eternal to question the parameters of their mission and demand to understand why they couldn't intervene even when the humans around them were causing chaos and war. He isn't even necessarily the most ethical of them despite this, considering he was running a mind-control cult in South America when we find him in the modern day, but he's just so intriguing! Plus his relationship with Makkari is just 10/10, absolutely adorable. Speaking of Makkari, I feel like she's going to get a more prominent role in the follow-up film and I'm glad for it. I love speedster characters as a rule and her personality is extremely fun and cute and quirky and I love that she speaks exclusively in ASL. I'm also on the side of "glad that Makkari and Druig didn't kiss" because quite honestly Hollywood has ruined kiss scenes for me 🤷 physically intimate moments that don't include kissing (see; the hug at the end of Rogue One) and that leave the nature of a relationship up for interpretation are my JAM. I'm not sure if I want to view Makkari and Druig as romantic just yet and I get that option because I didn't have to watch them make out. Similarly, I thought the hand-touch scenes between Ikaris and Sersi were so much more profound and moving than anything else they did.

Especially that sex scene. That's literally the only thing I would straight-up cut from the film entirely if I had the option. It went on too long and didn't add anything beneficial or meaningful to the story. It was definitely the sauciest scene Marvel has ever put in a movie but it was unnecessary.

I felt a little shafted when I realized Ajak was already dead at the start of the film. I see why she needed to be, since even after the split of the team during the Inquisition she still had an air of unquestionable authority and if she were alive for any part of the active plot it would have detracted from Sersi's arc in a big way. Also, her armor design was the absolute coolest.

Phastos was BRILLIANT. Absolutely phenomenal from his character design to his growth as a person to his actor's performance. He was animated and present and fascinating in every possible way, and his modern life with his husband and son was just beautiful. Even if it didn't have the added bonus of pissing off homophobes and racists all around the world, I cannot stress enough how excellent the portrayal of his relationship and family was. This was gay representation finally, FINALLY done right. None of the other characters gave him shit or even questioned him for being married to a human man, we didn't suffer through any cliche, pandering lines, and Disney didn't once try to use it as marketing clout. His marriage was depicted as naturally as anything else and that's exactly how you do it.

Also, I've seen discourse stirring up about Phastos and his small scene after the bombing of Hiroshima, and while I do think there is discussion to be had over having specifically the black character in the ensemble voice feeling responsible for humanity's war crimes, I feel like a lot of viewers on tumblr in particular are taking this scene supremely out of context or else wilfully misunderstanding it entirely. Nothing about the scene implies at all that Phastos was directly responsible for nuclear technology. Earlier scenes in Babylon showing him inventing the steam engine for humanity, only for Ajak to instruct him to take it back a notch and settle for introducing them to the plow instead, which he's very put-off by. The scene in Hiroshima is foreshadowed by this, as by the time humanity has reached atomic bomb levels of technology, Phastos believes his assistance in the advancement of human industry and invention helped bring about more destruction and harm than good (and given what Arishem reveals later about the purpose of humanity he isn't completely wrong). Phastos is /not/ responsible but he carries the guilt anyway, though at the same time when he tells Ajak "they aren't worth saving" as he breaks down and cries, he acknowledges that despite his hand in human advancement throughout history, in the end it was the choices of the humans themselves that lead to the destruction. If anything at all throughout our history was going to make a sentient, godlike being truly give up on us, it would probably be nuclear warfare. The inclusion of Hiroshima didn't feel at all like it was done in bad faith or was somehow making light of it (I saw somebody call it a throwaway scene and I just 🤷🤷🤷). Obviously this is just my take on it.

One other thing about Phastos; it's stated repeatedly, by multiple characters, that Ikaris is the strongest of them all and is generally considered unbeatable. Of all the Eternals, Phastos is the only one to keep Ikaris contained for any significant amount of time. He's the only one who comes close to actually defeating him, though both Thena and Makkari give him a good beating. The only thing I want to see more of with Phastos is more of his family, more of his relationship with his husband, more on the people who restored his faith in the people he believed couldn't be worth saving.

Sprite was an exceptionally fun character. Her powers were so cool, and the allusion to her being the source of many of the ancient world's myths and legends is a really interesting idea (the tale of Icarus, the epic of Gilgamesh, etc) I would have been totally happy with her as a plucky sidekick the entire time, but giving her the unrequited love sideplot was actually a really awesome move that gave her frustrations with her presented age and appearance greater depth. She was never portrayed as a rueful or vindictive person towards Sersi or Ikaris despite loving him and bring jealous of her. She loved Sersi too, and stayed with her because they were family. She never blamed Sersi for having things she wanted, and only really held it against her at the very end because she believed she was supporting the "right" side of the conflict (Ikaris'). I personally think one of the biggest missed opportunities for this film was in regards to Sprite; I think it would have been a massive step in the right direction to have made her non-binary. Honestly when I first saw her I didn't even think she was meant to be female; her costume styling and haircut screamed androgynous and her voice and mannerisms didn't skew masculine or feminine to me. I still thought she might even be a boy when she was hiding in the illusion of an older woman at the bar with Sersi and Dane. Nothing else would have had to change at all, not her love for Ikaris or desire to grow, because her entire story arc fits a non-binary character to a T. She even has this incredibly poignant line where she asks, despairingly, why Arishem made her this way. That was the most queer-coded line in a film I've ever heard and I can only imagine how many people struggling with their identities and outward presentations felt seen when they heard it.

The film sort of lost Sprite for me towards the end, if I'm being honest. I thought the plot was setting Ikaris up for a fake out when Sprite chose to go with him and support the completion of the emergence. I thought that Sprite was either planning to sabotage him from the very start or else was going to have an emotionally tumultuous moment fighting her teammates and switch sides during the battle. I felt pretty let down, but also didn't hate that while she was clearly conflicted still, she chose to stand by and choose Ikaris over Sersi despite loving them both. What I didn't particularly get or enjoy was Sersi abruptly offering to make her human with "leftover energy" from the celestial. I don't even understand how the leftover energy worked in the first place, but more to the point I don't feel like Sprite's dissatisfaction with her physical form and frustration with her unrequited affection for Ikaris foreshadowed being turned into a human at the end. It felt very abrupt and flat and I just wasn't that into it. It was my second least-favorite thing after the sex scene.

Also, as a side note; Kingo's Peter Pan allegory was an excellent bit of dialogue. I had absolutely no idea the movie intended for Sprite to be in love with Ikarus the way Tinker Bell loved Peter Pan but once he said it I was like "oh, of COURSE!"

Side note of the side note; Kingo was absolutely in love with Ikaris too. He was playing him in his latest movie when they find him post timeskip, portraying him as the sexy leading heart-throb. He expresses admiration and very unwavering loyalty to Ikaris up until the reveal of the truth, and sits the last battle out entirely because he can't bear to choose sides.

Finally, onto Ikaris. I knew he was shady from the moment he showed up in London. I didn't exactly assume he was going to be the "villain" in the end, but I knew there was something sus about him when Sersi explained he'd just up and disappeared on her without explanation. While their romantic backstory was a little bland, their wedding scene was sweet and it made me sure that whatever made Ikaris leave her before the events of the movie couldn't have been good. I do appreciate that while they kept up the "good soldier, follows orders, doesn't question them" theme they had for him until the very end, I like that he didn't stay robotic or one-note the entire time. Like the Icarus of mythology, he's shown to be a bit vain and overconfident at times ("I could lead them" (the Avengers) and also funny and a little awkward ("I am beautiful"/"You're breaking up?"/ getting yeeted into a building by a deviant while clearly trying to make an impressive entrance for Sersi in London). He was subtle but he wasn't absolutely blank, so when his true colors were revealed in the flashback it was all the more jarring. This heroic vestige of a man lead his leader, who trusted and loved him, to her death and then watched her die, only to then plant her body strategically to feed into his lies. Yes, I absolutely bought how much it pained him to kill Ajak, just as I bought his feelings of absolute failure after the death of the celestial inside Earth, but he still did it all. He lied to and manipulated his family, successfully killed one and tried pretty damn hard to kill several others. The only thing I didn't care for was that after all that, after killing Ajak and then threatening and fighting his teammates without so much as a blink, he suddenly just absolutely can't bring himself to harm Sersi at all. He falls to his knees and watches her win, and then accepts his failure and flies into the sun. He self-destructs because his perceived weakness for the woman he loves made him lose his fight. On paper it all looks really good and I feel like it probably resonated well with lots of audiences, but I don't know, the "I will do anything for my cause but I can't kill her because I love her" just falls really flat for me.

I'm also just a bit bummed out because at first when he flew into space I thought he was just going to exile himself as some kind of self-punishment. I thought maybe he'd return in the sequel with some sort of reformed outlook and maybe face consequences for murdering Ajak and fighting his family. Unlike some "redeemed" characters (Kyle Ron comes to mind here) he actually had a basis for a believable redemption and I liked him enough on screen to want to see it.

(Also my stupid shipper brain immediately saw Sersi and Dane as the superior couple, but figured hey, Sersi has two hands. She deserves two boyfriend's to hold them. I hope somebody else with the same brainrot as me writes some Dane/Sersi/Ikaris thruple nonsense, even just a little).

Dane was a fun character, but beyond character himself I was literally just so happy to hear Kit Harrington actually get to speak real dialogue and emote and shout and act like a fucking human being. Three straight seasons of Jon Snow unintelligibly grunting almost had be convinced the man couldn't act at all. Now that I've seen Tobias Menzies in The Crown and Kit Harrington in this, I'm even more retroactively pissed at Game of Thrones for absolutely wasting these actors' potential (and don't even get me started on how badly they wasted Lena Headey in the final season). I'm very excited to see what The Black Knight has to offer us.

Y'all, Gemma Chan is too beautiful for this world. Her cheekbones alone could stop wars. I have a new celebrity crush and she's going to be living rent free in my brain for at least a few months. I love the concept of Sersi's character so much; I love that from the moment she's introduced she's the most human of all the Eternals. Her very first scene is her appreciating how beautiful the earth is. She's the first on the team to get right into human society, learning their languages and helping them with their daily routines. She has a human wedding ceremony. In the present day, she's a teacher with a human boyfriend, and the first thing we see her do with her powers post timeskip is save a child's life and hug her to comfort her after. Throughout her struggles with coming to terms with being Ajak's chosen replacement, she chooses kindness at every possible chance. She doesn't even initially want to kill the celestial that threatens the continued existence of Earth; she just wants to put it to sleep, to avoid being responsible for the murder of what is essentially one of her Gods.

My gripe with Sersi is I feel like she inadvertently becomes the audience surrogate for long stretches of the middle of the film, and we lose her and miss chunks of her arc because she fades into the background. I still don't understand how she turned a deviant into a tree, despite it being the thing that leads her to eventually defeat the celestial by turning it into whatever she turned it into. Her powers are based in matter manipulation but it's almost too vague. I feel like out of all the ensemble cast, Sersi got the least amount of actual growth because so much of her time as the main character was spent providing exposition and being the audience stand-in for understanding the plot. Her talks with Arishem might have been much better as chapters in a book rather than movie scenes. She wasn't boring or non-competing, but she fell flatter to me than the rest of the Eternals and I think that's a disservice to both the character and the actress.

#eternals #movie review #spoilers #i loved it ok #i really did

[i-watch-too-many-movies]

5 Favorite First Viewings of July 2021

Quick note: Hi everyone, I'm back, things have honestly been getting better for me, and I'm glad to be on this site full of cinephiles, people that are too horny, and cinephiles that are too horny. I'll be more active on here. But anyway, let's talk about some movies.

Beyond the Valley of the Dolls (1970) (dir. Russ Meyer)

CW: Abortion mention

What a picture. What a gorgeous, sexy, horrifying slice of what Hollywood and star life can do to a bunch of bright-eyed young people looking for success. Also is a critique of how macho nature can ruin friendships and romantic relationships with total ease. I was obsessed with the scene transitions, like Pet pouring pancake mix onto a plate after the abortion scene, or Kelly singing after someone screams before their murder in the opening scene.

Great, campy flick with exceptional music too.

Deep Cover (1992) (dir. Bill Duke)

Laurence Fishburne plays Russell Stevens, a Cincinnati police officer who hopes to do well by the community, to make a difference. He’s traumatized by the death of his substance-abusing father, and wants to make sure that he can help the people of his own town. He goes undercover on assignment as a drug dealer, where his boss orders him to take down the kingpin. Stevens realizes the police’s own failings while on assignment. The racist abuse he takes from Agent Carver, and the realization that the police department is protecting drug kingpins like Gallegos and Barbossa. Giving drugs to Black kids and Latinx kids so there will be less of them. The cops are no different than the drug kingpins looking to make filthy amounts of money.

Fishburne’s performance is excellent, as Stevens feels he has to maintain a stone face so he doesn’t get caught by Jason or Barbossa or any of his cronies, but also he maintains a stone face to try and hide his emotion, his trauma. But when he gets pissed, Fishburne acts it beautifully, as is when he has to deliver a funny quip to counter Jason’s douchebaggery. And the production design, holy fuck, the sets and the lighting.

A perfect neo-noir for the HW Bush years, arguably one of the most timeless commentaries on the era, as well as the police as a whole.

Fast Five (2011) (dir. Justin Lin)

I was torn between including this or Furious 7, but I ultimately went with Fast Five because it felt like an important turning point in the series, it's a great heist film, and it reached the same chaotic highs and genuinely excellent filmmaking that I had been waiting for since 2 Fast and Tokyo Drift.

Fast Five opens where Fast & 4ious left off. Dom is hauled away to prison on a bus. Mia and Brian drive in their high-tech cars and knock the bus over, helping Dom escape. The title drops. Fast Five. It’s such an intense yet short action scene, and dropping the title immediately after it lets the viewer know that this movie is not fucking around. It’s arguably gonna be more intense and insane than the previous one.

And it is. The filmmakers made the decision to use a lot more practical stunt work for the film, and as a result, it leads to, so far, the best action in the entire series, since 2 Fast and Tokyo Drift. It’s not just how it’s shot or edited, it’s the geography of the locations, the rooftop chase echoes the rooftop chase of Jackie Chan’s masterwork Police Story, particularly the way each character bounces from top to top.

And of course, there’s the silliest moment in the movie, the one that matches the intensity and kineticism of a film like 2 Fast, which is driving the Reyes’ bank vault throughout the street, getting chased by corrupt cops.

I know we make fun of Vin Diesel for saying “family” all the time in these films, but there’s a reason we remember him saying all of these impassioned monologues. Because he’s unbelievably sincere, and has so much love in his heart for every single person in the room. Anytime he delivers a speech to any of them, it’s genuinely heartwarming.

This is the film that finally shows La Familia in their best environment, which is working together, in a movie genre that allows them to work together, which is a heist film. And a great one at that.

Last Days (2005) (dir. Gus Van Sant)

CW: Mention of suicide

Several films have been made about legendary rock artist Kurt Cobain, and for good reason. He is one of the most tragic figures in rock and roll. A tortured genius who has written and performed classic song after classic song with his band Nirvana. He was called the voice of a generation, and helped change the face of mainstream alternative rock music as we know it. But with that fame, and all of those expectations came a worsening depression and further drug abuse, and his eventual death. But most of the films about Kurt Cobain ask one question which gets under my skin way too much:

“Who REEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALLY killed Kurt Cobain?”

It was him. He did. And it’s okay, I’m sad too. Thinking that Kurt Cobain was murdered is completely ignoring the depression that he faced. And despite Last Days being more inspired by the death of Cobain rather than actually about it, it feels much more honest than the conspiracy documentaries on his death, wanting to leech off of his dead body.

This is the last installment of Gus Van Sant’s “Death Trilogy”, the previous two installments being Gerry (2001), and Elephant (2003). While I have not seen Gerry, I have seen Elephant though, and love that film for its minimalist, raw nature, and its boldness for not romanticizing the school shooter or the lives they had taken. Last Days falls into that trap once, as I don’t agree with the shot of Blake’s soul climbing up a ladder, that always struck me as cheesy in a film that is anything but.

Last Days is similar to Elephant in terms of the way it is filmed. Its usage of long takes, and still shots of characters doing various things, such as Blake playing his guitar behind a drum set. The way these moments are shot is similar to a Chantal Akerman film, particularly Jeanne Dielman. Where the acts of the mundane are the stars of the film. Blake wanders around an empty house, and the viewer can feel the pain, not just through Michael Pitt’s acting, but from the house itself. Its decay, its paint peeling from the walls, from the soft glow of the lamp that lights his face.

I say this is the most honest film about Kurt Cobain, because, despite the characters technically being fictional (the main character who looks, walks, and acts like Cobain is named Blake), this film focuses on the mental state of a person before they eventually take their own life. They’re still working, still making music, still trying to talk to friends and bandmates, but the depression lingers on. Not once does this film try to make you believe that someone else killed him, because you can see the signs of his own suicide taking place just through the film’s excellent cinematography by Harris Savides, showing his mental state only growing worse through the production design.

And it’s empathetic with him. There’s no judgement for leaving rehab, there’s no finger-wagging at him or the people he was with, there’s just a silent prayer at the end of the film, hoping that he is in a better place than he was.

Sometimes you don’t need to show every event that led you to where you are, all you can show is the moment, which also makes this better than most biopics as well, as it never feels messy or muddled, just showing one moment of Blake/Kurt’s life.

I really loved this film, and I’ll be writing about it in full soon.

The Village (2004) (dir. M. Night Shyamalan)

The Cracked.com/Channel Awesome audience stuck in 2012 will tell you that this was the beginning of the end for Shyamalan. That this was when people stopped taking him seriously, that this was when he became more of a punchline because of his twist endings.

But why?

The Village was released in 2004, deep in the Bush administration, during the early stages of the Iraq War. The leaders of the time were talking about imaginary boogeymen, terrorists that would attack the civilians if they could. Because of 9/11, politicians could get away with these false ideas with the majority of Americans fully believing them. The boogeymen in The Village are “The People We Don’t Speak Of”, monsters attracted by the color red. Yet we find out that they are all costumes made by the Elders of the land, designed to prevent people from going outside the land. They rule by fear disguised as love. They’ve gone through their own traumas through the deaths of their family members, but they’ve decided to completely abandon the lives that they’ve had and have their children living lies.

9/11 impacted American life by teaching citizens to live primarily by fear, to not trust anyone but their own people. And yet, post-9/11, all that increased was not “coming together”, but hate crimes against South Asian people. The rage white Americans had felt led to conservative politicians pushing fear-mongering agendas, and said white Americans blindly accepted. The outside world was progressing, but too many people were fine with living with further conservative politics only regressing American life further and further back, all for the illusion of safety. Meanwhile, the only threats to them were not the brown citizens outside of America they were so afraid of, but the white elders, the white politicians.

The Village explores these fears so eloquently, all while having a terrifying atmosphere, an enchanting score, and brilliant sound design. I enjoyed this movie very much.

Other viewings I enjoyed:

Beavis and Butt-Head Do America (1996) (dir. Mike Judge) (re-watch)

Blow Out (1981) (dir. Brian de Palma) (re-watch)

Clueless (1995) (dir. Amy Heckerling) (re-watch)

Furious 7 (2015) (dir. James Wan)

The Long Goodbye (1973) (dir. Robert Altman)

Lupin III: The First (2019) (dir. Takashi Yamazaki)

Unbreakable (2000) (dir. M. Night Shyamalan) (re-watch)

Velvet Goldmine (1998) (dir. Todd Haynes)

The Visit (2015) (dir. M. Night Shyamalan)

#favorite first watches #these movies are (chef's kiss) #beyond the valley of the dolls #russ meyer #deep cover #bill duke #fast five #justin lin #last days #gus van sant #the village #m night shyamalan

[madisonrooney]

all the christmas disney stuff sounds really fun! glad you're getting to do that this year. oh, whoa, riding a camel sounds like a weird experience. it is a bumpy ride? haha 😋

a fake tree sounds nice! i've always thought decorating for the holidays was really fun. cookies are delicious. that sounds like a lot of fun. what kind of cookies do you like?

i enjoy looking at christmas lights too. even better if there are cookies to munch on and christmas music playing in the car haha

interesting. i don't really like any of those foods tbh, but i know i'm probably in the minority on that.

for the holidays i really like decorating. i do it for halloween and christmas. and i really like listening to holiday music, really helps get me into the spirit. also holiday movies are my jam haha

what are some disney movies that you expected to be really good but were disappointed in? what do you think the creators could have done to make them better?

its been a while since i rode a camel but i remember it feeling like riding a horse just taller lol. fun fact i also rode an elephant at the county fair when i was like 10.

we made the good ol pillsbury holiday cookies! left over from the last socal style sector party with @han-is-solo and @johnrutter. (we made halloween ones at our halloween party too lol). in general tho, i like lots of cookies. we actually got some to go from the restaurant we went to tonight, a couple different kinds of chocolate chip and a pumpkin cookie. the chocolate chip sadly wasnt that good even tho chocolate is usually my fav but the pumpkin was really good. might go down and have another bite after im done answering this lol.

the lights drive thru i did last year had a special radio station! i think you could order food too but since this was prior to vaccines rolling out we were too scared to even open our windows lol.

my best friend hates thanksgiving food so youre in good company lol.

i enjoy all that too! its been fun getting to decorate in my condo after living in a dorm for four years. i decorate it for halloween too, and it was fun to have decorations up for both of this years socal style sector premiere parties. speaking of holiday movies, we watched mickeys christmas carol, a charlie brown christmas, and part of frosty the snowman while we put up the tree today! do you have any fav holiday movies?

ooo thats a really good question cuz ive def gotten that feeling a number of times!

- the good dinosaur. thats my most definitive answer to this question. i was HYPE for that movie. a pixar movie with talking animals that had super cute designs (and would and DID make for great plush lol)! i went into 2015 thinking that would far surpass inside out as my preferred pixar release of the year, but it ended up being the other way around. i rewatched it earlier this year for the first time since i saw it in theaters and i was really able to solidify my opinions on it and i feel about the same about it as i did initially. in short, its just too slow. there are too many scenes with little to no dialogue and a good chunk of the movie is just two characters which i feel is inherently boring. i think there's a difference between movies that are unambitious and aren't trying to be some great feat so it's okay if they're not amazing and movies that are trying way too hard to be something amazing and fall short. for example, cars 2 (which i've already mentioned lol). people hate it but imo it was never TRYING to be as good as like...up or something. it was just trying to be fun and i think it succeeded. on the other hand, the good dinosaur advertised itself as pixar's next big epic adventure movie and ended up just being very boring.

on a more personal note, it was my first time seeing a movie at the el capitan in hollywood since moving to california which would then become a tradition that ive kept up to this day, so the expectations were very high. it almost made it an even WORSE experience being in a theater with such high energy bc people were laughing super hard at things that i just didn't find funny. i remember being stressed for the rest of that night bc id wasted so much hype on something that was ultimately disappointing.

as far as what i think they could've done better....this is gonna sound harsh but i think they should've scrapped it altogether lol. BUT i have a reason for that. this movie went through production hell with director and cast changes and major changes to the characters. rather than salvage it and force it to be released, i think they should've just realized it wasn't working and stop trying to fix something that just isn't gonna work no matter what. if not that, id say add more characters to arlo and spot's journey and add more dialogue. (keep spot mute tho, i did like that aspect of it).

- moana. i do like this movie, dont get me wrong, but i feel like it plays into way too many predictable and overused tropes. particularly maui giving up on moana almost immediately after he finally took a liking to her, and then deciding to come back after for no apparent reason. i remember the scene where he leaves after moana breaks his hook literally making my blood boil in the theater bc i hate that trope so much. to make it better, i feel like their relationship needed a little more development, more evidence of why they're starting to like each other, a longer buildup to maui leaving her, and a longer buildup to maui coming back.

- christopher robin. another one i like but not as much as id hoped. at first, this seemed like the live action remake that was finally gonna do it right imo. id actually always kinda wanted a movie about a grown up christopher robin. but i feel like it leaned too hard into being cheesy, hokey, and predictable. but there were some dark scenes too. i feel like it just needed a little more balance in tone. i also have mixed feelings about the fact that the toys are actually alive in this universe. i feel like maybe only christopher robin and his daughter should be able to see them as alive bc of their childlike sense of wonder, yknow?

- luca. again liked but not as much as id hoped. i thought this had the potential to be a new hyperfixation tbh. i loved the character design the world and the premise. but i feel like the conflict was kind of weird. the scene where alberto tries to scare giulia as a sea monster didnt make a lot of sense to me. i didnt really get either luca or albertos motives, but especially albertos. its not super fresh in my mind tho tbh so id need to watch it again to say for sure what bugged me about it. i also don't totally get how luca and alberto were SO close even tho they hadn't even known each other that long. and like alberto said luca got him off the island but like they both chose to go to portorosso??? also right from the beginning it was painfully obvious to me that alberto's father abandoned him yet they tried to make it some big reveal. i felt like there were some plotholes too, like why does alberto spend most of his time above the surface even before meeting luca? why did he and his dad LIVE above the surface? i cant quite say how id make it better. i do feel like their friendship should involve a conflict followed by resolution but i feel like it needed one that was more fleshed out.

- encanto. again, like but have some issues with. i REALLY tried to just let myself enjoy this one bc im sick of picking apart every one of the last number of disney and pixar releases but i kinda couldnt help myself. kinda like luca and moana, i also found this one pretty predictable. i felt like the dos oruguitas scene didnt tell us anything we didnt already know. i felt like surface pressure and what else can i do kinda told the same message. bruno's story was also a bit confusing to me, i didn't totally get how him leaving was to protect mirabel and like he doesnt CHOOSE what hes gonna see, why does he get blamed for that but like idk pepa doesnt get blamed for bad weather? the concept of the "gift" was also a little confusing to me, like the literal original purpose of it was to protect the family so how did it take so long for abuela to understand that the wellbeing of the family is whats most important. this is another one where idrk how id fix it, there are a lot of aspects of it i just find confusing.

actually ignore everything i just said im mainly disappointed with the lack of capybara content @deweyduck am i right

- frozen 2. i didn't have THAT high of expectations for this one, i was already sick of frozen around when it came out, but i really did try to dip back into the hype phase i was in for the first frozen. alas, it wasn't worth it. this is another one i just find confusing. it's weird to me that elsa is the fifth spirit since she's human and the other spirits are animals or creatures (or....air). she also makes ice so isnt that the same as water?? also idk why but it took me like 3 times of watching it to fully understand where she got her powers from lmao. i also feel like they fucked up kristoff's character. he didnt even KNOW anna before frozen 1 and now he acts like he has no life without her. and their whole conflict is caused by a MISUNDERSTANDING. like anna literally left cuz she had to it had nothing to do with kristoff. also i hate how batshit crazy the internet went over him saying "i'm here, what do you need?" like yes a guy should be there for his girl but they also make it sound like he shouldn't ask for a single thing for himself which doesn't sound healthy (but im aro so what do i know). then you have olaf who all of a sudden has a concept of aging which is given no explanation. and don't even get me started on how messed up it was that they thought it was ok to just make their white characters poc and make iduna native even tho her skin is clearly darker when shes a child than when shes an adult. and the internet never talked about that. hm. gonna be honest and say this is another one i wish just didnt happen lmao. i get that the franchise is so popular and a sequel is something a lot of people wanted, but i dont think its fair to break a disney rule (of having no WDAS canon sequels post rescuers down under, or winnie the pooh if were counting that) JUST bc of the hype. sure they evened out a tiny bit with also doing ralph breaks the internet but i have a load of problems with that movie too so was it really worth it fhdjgkhfdjk.

ok WOW sorry for writing a novel lmao but what about you??

#gcwca secret santa #long post

[ben-solo98]

I can’t believe anyone at Warner Bros thought it was a good idea to release the theatrical version of JUSTICE LEAGUE when this version exists. I’m glad Zack was allowed to come back and show us his true vision. It could just be the 4 hour runtime, but it feels like an epic from the classic days of Hollywood. I really like Zack Snyder, I think he's a visionary director. I also think he's overpraised and overhated at the same time. He has a very vocal and passionate fanbase who think he's a god of cinema and then there's an equally vocal group of people who think he's one of the worst things to ever happen to movies. I like him a reasonable amount. Even if I don't always love his movies in their entirety, he's puts some of the most beautiful visuals on screen that I've ever seen, especially in the comic book movie genre. He also made me appreciate Superman, I've loved superheroes my entire life, but I was mostly into Marvel when I was a kid and when I did venture over to DC it was primarily for Batman, couldn't care less about Superman. Boring. Until I sat in a packed theater in June of 2013 to watch MAN OF STEEL in IMAX 3D and Zack Snyder (and everyone else involved) blew my mind and finally made me understand/appreciate the character of Superman. I'll even defend that Kevin Costner death scene, I don't care. Supes is only a small part of this film, but all of the scenes featuring him and/or the supporting characters from his solo ouing were some of my favorites, because of what Zack and the cast (especially Henry Cavill) had set up in the previous two films, but also because it was usually underlined by Hans Zimmer's amazing Superman theme.

On paper, the story is very similar to the theatrical version, but it feels like a completely different film. I didn't hate the theatrical cut when it first came out, but it definitely felt like it was nowhere near what it could have been and the more time that has passed and more we've learned about the controversies behind the scenes of those reshoots, the more problems I've found myself having with it. There's a different tone to this cut and while it's still not a perfect film, it's executed 1,000 times better. There's only about 4 or 5 scenes that I think are exactly the same and obviously since this movie is twice as long it's mostly new footage. My two favorite scenes from the theatrical version were Wonder Woman's entrance and the History of the Mother Boxes. Both scenes were still present here, but they were extended, more brutal and all around more awesome. Which just proves you gotta let Zack complete his vision, he knows what he's doing. It also proves that most of what was likable about the last one was because of Zack. Ray Fisher as Cyborg was a big highlight for me the last time around. Another character I didn't really care about until I saw his portrayal of him, which really says something about how great of an actor he is because he's been very vocal about how he was mistreated making that version of the movie, plus his role wasn't nearly as significant, but he still came out as one of the only really great things about that film. He's even better here, we get some much needed backstory on his character and next to Superman, he's kind of the heart and soul of the movie, it all falls apart without him. And it's refreshing to see a black character like this portrayed in such a positive way, I'm certainly not an expert on the subject, but I couldn't help but think that we don't really get to see black men cry much on screen. I really hope this isn't the last time we see him take on this role.

Ezra Miller as the Flash is a big step up as well, I didn't hate their interpretation in the last film, but the Flash was definitely my least favorite character. Wasn't ever excited about the character's upcoming solo film until now, my mind has been changed. Ezra Miller is a very solid Barry Allen and brings some much needed humor to the table. His powers are also fully utilized here, that's the thing about this cut of the movie, every character gets their moment to shine. I still think this film was lacking in the Aquaman department, there's some continuity issues between this movie and his stand alone feature. Mainly that we're introduced to two supporting players from his film and they feel like completely different characters. All of my Aquaman problems happen in the first half, I still thought Jason Momoa did a great job. I'm one of the few people (maybe the only person) who's been a Batfleck fan since the day they announced Ben was cast in the role, it's a shame we'll never get to see him in any Batman solo movies, I was really looking forward to that. J.K. Simmons is only in two scenes as Commissioner Gordon, but I want like 5 Batman films with him reprising his role. There's actually a few big actors who were in the first one and I didn't know why they agreed to do it and they don't get much more screen time here, but they actually feel crucial to the story. Also Jeremy Irons is an underrated Alfred, I think Jeremy Irons is just underrated period.

Steppenwolf is definitely a worthy villain this time around. I don't know why Joss Whedon decided to change his design or his motives/backstory, or why you'd completely cut out Darkseid, but that sucked, this was good. Occasionally he'd say something that made him sound like a bad guy from an 80s cartoon or old video game, but overall it was good.

Tom Holkenborg's score is phenomenal. Danny Elfman did it for the other one, I usually like him, but Tom's works a lot better. And some of Danny's comments make it seem like he has a really big ego and Tom's have made me feel the opposite. Almost everytime Wonder Woman came on screen this female warrior cry/siren song (I don't know how else to describe it) would play, at first I thought it was cool, but after 4 hours it got old. That's my only criticism about the score. There were a few "strange" music choices, Zack is known for those, sometimes I think he just does it because he likes to troll the haters, I respect it regardless. But, the last film had two covers recorded for it I really liked: "Everybody Knows" by Sigrid and "Come Together" by Gary Clarke Jr. (Which I've been on record saying it's "better than the Beatles' version"). I missed those songs a little, but also, not a big deal, ultimately.

I thought the 4 hour runtime would be way too long, but honestly, it worked. Nothing felt unnecessary, the story flowed at a reasonable pace. Sure, you could have probably cut out the last twenty minutes because it gives the film 3 or 4 different endings that just set up future films that will probably never happen now (I hope I'm proven wrong), but as a fan, I loved those scenes. I'm looking forward to see what happens and if anything good in the realm of DC films comes of releasing this. 8.6/10.

#thesnydercut #ForAutumn #JusticeLeague #moviereview

[sarinataylor]

Asfsfg, the apparently was definitely not intented to be this salty because you contribute so much to the "Joger fandom"!!!! However, I'm sososo glad you elaborated on your personal soulmate AU ideas because it has me yelling. The entire thing is great but especially the last paragraph??? My biggest problem with soulmate aus was always the fate aspect - but two people kinda "earning" this?? (And yeah, it's a Roger thing to straight up despise his soulmate) Amazing, really

ajshajk ‘joger fandom’. you’re a hoot, i love it. 

yeah!!! and i imagine it as coming as a complete surprise to them both. like the soulmate thing is touted as ~natural and easy and smooth~ and people who don’t have that experience (such as roger and his dickhead soulmate) are viewed as sort of.... broken? like, it’s a hell of a lot more common than people think but it’s really really really hidden became of the stigma against it. there’s a lot of unhappy soulmates slogging through unhappy marriages and knowing that they’re stuck in them for the rest of their lives because, well, they’re literally made for one another.

which roger is always kind of grateful that he grew up with his parents clearly having a dysfunctional relationship because it meant that soulmate fairytale went down the drain fairly early in life and meant that when he did meet his soulmate he didn’t jump into anything, even though his soulmate very clearly expected him to. he kind of just treated it like pre-soulmark dating (dating in the years before you meet your soulmark mate) and realised that..... yeah this dude is a fucking dickhead? like if he’s the perfect match for this guy he’s gotta fucking work on himself, jesus christ. 

and john’s soulmate died when he was like.... nine. his mark just faded to a light grey. there’s not so much a stigma against those ‘left behind’ as there is just an unending sense of pity, it’s like being widowed except everyone is harping on around you about how you’ll just never know the sense of being complete like they do etc etc etc. and john kind of becomes a bit defensive about the whole thing over time, a bit of a soulmate sceptic as yeah. a defence mechanism, really. spend over a decade having people tell you that you’re incomplete and i guess you just cling to something even more pessimist to protect yourself.

there are all of these sort of.... sad dating agencies designed for the ‘left behind’, but it’s really clear that partnerships outside of the soulmarked are viewed as lesser. a lot of “oh! well that’s.... that’s sweet, good on you guys for making a go of it!” pre-soul mark dating is fine but there’s an expectation that even if you’ve been dating someone for years, if one of you meets your soulmark mate.... your relationship is just automatically over.

and anyway they’re probably introduced by freddie who drags john over to where roger is idk holding court in the corner of a bar or something like, “no, john, you have to meet my friend roger! he’s a non believer too!” which. like, soulmate scepticism is something that’s acknowledged now but it’s not something that’s really openly talked about in polite company - you’re likely to insult most of the people around you if you start harping on about how their life defining bonds are utter bullshit determined by biology and nothing else.

john falls in love p much as soon as he’s gone all oh yeah my soulmate died, ya know... expecting roger to say the same (most sceptics are those ‘left behind’) and roger is like... oh no, man. i just didn’t fucking like my “soulmate”. like.... fuck that, y’know? 

and ye there’s a long slog, tbh. because roger has feelings of inadequacy tied tot he fact that john never even got to meet his soulmate so he sometimes gets caught up in feeling like he’s competing against a ghost that’s hanging over their relationship, and that being one of the ~left behind~ is something he can never begin to understand. and john, esp for the first few years, has that low lying anxiety that one day roger is just going to run into his soulmate and, just like in all the soulmate lowkey propaganda films churned out by hollywood, realise that there’s someone perfect for him (this goes away after actually meeting roger’s “soulmate” in the parking lot of a tesco’s one day while they’re trying desperately to stuff the christmas dinner shopping in the back of roger’s shitty ‘93 vauxhall that’s more rust than car. the guy is a fucking douchebag who makes no less than three racist comments in all of five minutes of conversation, and john is fucking dumbfounded by the entire interaction. “if i wasn’t a sceptic before, i would be now” “tell me about it.”)

and ye idk the idea of living in a society which values instant, powerful connection over the slow building of relationships over time? the idea of living in that society and choosing one another over and over again?  to looking down at words that are literally meant to define you and saying, fuck that, i choose who i love and how every single day? ugh

#lo talks #joger hc's #headcanon asks #I LIKE SOULMATE AU'S OK #Anonymous

[animentality]

I think I adored black panther so much because it really went out there

Most Americans aren't going to be exposed to African cultures at all, outside of jokes or stereotypical "people living in huts with funny masks" factoids.

Black panther was hugely successful financially, it got to a huge audience, and it was something so different from what we are used to seeing.

I'm glad marvel is so organized when it comes to planning.

You see, you couldn't start with Black Panther.

I'm sorry, but you can't.

Most people know Iron Man.

They know Captain America.

To be honest, most people when asked to think of a super hero, will typically go to Super Man.

Batman (not super but he's generally what people think of).

No one thinks of the guardians of the Galaxy, well, not before anyway.

What Marvel did was clever because they started with the heroes we knew, made solid action movies that everyone could enjoy, and made all of us like super heroes.

They made comic book heroes mainstream in a way that everyone could appreciate.

The biggest thing right now I would argue is super hero movies, in fact.

No one calls you a weirdo or a social shut in if you've seen Avengers Infinity war.

Everyone's seen it, or knows of it.

That is mainstream culture.

Every star in that movie is a star and someone to watch out for.

Heroes that no one knew before, Rocket, Groot, Draxx, they had a really funny and entertaining set of movies.

People now know the guardians of the Galaxy.

Doctor Strange? People know him now, think he's interesting.

So to come back to my original point, marvel was smart in introducing first our most popular heroes. Iron Man, Captain America, Thor. Hulk, although that movie people seem to have forgotten and I'm not so sure anyone really liked that one.

Then, as it began to develop its cinematic universe, it started introducing the more goofy ones, with ant man, guardians of the Galaxy, doctor strange, because by this point marvel is known for making good movies with good action and likable characters.

So what does this mean for black panther?

Well.

It means that by the point black panther was released, marvel was confident and didn't feel like black panther was a risk.

So black panther gets to say what it wants to say, explore themes never explored before in a mainstream family friendly movie.

It gets to be unique and special and criticize white colonization and make light fun of white people.

Because marvel felt it could do that.

So I appreciate marvel for its planning because now it's huge.

Now it can show us more than the perfectly crafted movie designed to appeal to the white middle aged blue and white collar fanboys.

It can show us, and future generations, new stories about diverse subjects and cultures underappreciated and undervalued by mainstream America.

When I saw black panther, I honestly knew that it was an enormous achievement by marvel and a huge stride forward.

Call me an idealist and too optimistic, and maybe movies don't change things, maybe movies don't really affect how people view the world, but it was a sign of change.

Hollywood doesn't make those black and white movies about a white man falling in love with a white girl in a lovely white world anymore.

It doesn't just make stories where the damsel needs saving and the sturdy masculine white male is always the lead and center of attention, it's beginning to really change with the times.

And these are bitter times we live in, but maybe there are some silver linings in those storm clouds.

I don't know.

That's just what I think.

#black panther #tchalla #erik killmonger #chadwick boseman #michael b jordan

[geek-gem]

Transformers The Game 2007

So today I finally finished both campaigns. Will be honest reason it took this long because I was messing around especially wanting to get more bonus content which is something.

To be honest despite my first reason over time I started to like the game more. But compared to the later games. This is pretty weak especially for a first movie tie in game and I'm talking about the PS3/Xbox 360/PC/Wii/PS2 versions.

Playing it I'm reminded of myself playing video games on the PS2. Well I did when I was young played this on a PS2 whenever I could rent from Hollywood Video.

While I love the whole element of destruction and especially the voice cast. Such as Peter Cullen and Frank Welker returning including other great voices like Keith David as Barricade, Andrew Kishino as Jazz, Mark Ryan as Ironhide, Daniel Ross as Starscream, and some others.

The gameplay is what bothers me.

Despite getting used to it. The combat is weak and like people would say repetitive as folks would. Especially the guns don't work on all enemies considering they have a shield which I'm glad wasn't brought back in later games. Especially driving you can get used to it but like I've heard the word clunky and I agree.

When playing this yesterday I talked to myself about how I think the developers of the Revenge Of The Fallen game looked at this game and what to improve on. Because the Revenge Of The Fallen game is such a vast improvement to me despite some folks say other wise.

What I get is the 2007 games idea to show how out of this world these Cybertronians are.

But the gameplay is bothersome and feels like a weird prototype in a way where I literally think I'm glad we didn't return to this play style.

I do like getting all this bonus content. Especially the G1 skins. Which I'll get honest I used cheats to unlock them all. Including a bunch of other bonus content that you can try unlocking.

Especially I did play the Cybertron levels before going into what I had unlocked.

Will be honest I like the added edition of Shockwave as a boss fight. Especially he looks wonderful and I think I should show a picture of him.

What I like is how you can definitely recognize it's Shockwave and I honestly like this design. Despite I did like the ones from Dark Of The Moon and the Bumblebee movie which is possibly the best one.

Especially the concept of boss characters of other characters reminds me of other games like the Spider-Man movie games which was always a treat. Surprised their isn't one for the Autobot campaign with a new Autobot and interested and surprised they didn't use Soundwave I'm rambling.

Their some other stuff such as Ratchet missing throughout the game. Is it necessary to even play as Scorponok despite it being a call back to the movie scene with him. Including the end of the, "A Gathering Force" level mentions Bumblebee escaped with the All Spark yet we don't see him die. Also his boss fight with Barricade we can assume he died but just I'm going into too much detail.

Really I would only recommend if your a big Transformers fans that you might like this. But it will take time to get used to but I recommend checking out the other games.

Also the soundtrack is nice. Tags dealt with now excuse me I need to spread the news about a piece of news I've talked about before.

#transformers #transformers 2007 #bayformers