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sleepyowlwrites · 2 years

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wip folders/titles tag (to end all tags)

briar-bush snagged by @aalinaaaaaa @talesofsorrowandofruin @mj-is-writing and @nicola-writes my goodness. it's been a little while since I did this, and I've got some new followers, so here goes. I'm doing groupings AKA scrivener docs. and I'm not gonna do this again any time soon, no matter what new ideas I get.

and other stories > Idea Box:

Rowena > Troublesome Princes, Twin Wizards, Vanishing Staircase, Sneezing Rain, Tiny Pirates, Lost Dragons, Doomed Crown, True Love's Kiss

Ghost Story > Violet, Trans-dimensional Ghosts

Spirits and Summoners

Spider Silk

City Story > dirt in the doing, gang up on crime

Death Story > The Score

Guild Story > House of Favors, House of Swords, House of Breath

Hunter Story

Apocalypse Story > Wasteland > Two Alone

Summer Story > The Summer Gallery

College Story > Previous Lives and Premonitions

old fantasy > 29 Days of October

Tumblr Shorts > remember/forget, know/don't know, greatest detective, riveting revival, villain/not villain, glow, study flirting, hell in a handbasket, the chosen one, the grave diggers, a universe of you, potions, trust?

Archive > The Illusion, ideas

Stories? > >100, you were a windshield

youth > The Ephemeral Infinite

Prewritten > scenes pt.1, scenes pt.2, supplemental scenes, episodes, chronological

Parts of the Story > The Garden, The Broken Eclipse, An Ocean of Moments, Skin Deep Spaces, Valley Under the Bridge, Mountain and Moon, Right Here, Right Now, Just Between Us, Void Inside the Soul, Kinder Lies, Abyss of Memory, The Bittersweet and Beautiful, The Dragons of Summer

Draft 02 > The Garden, from the journal

Sorting the Story > R and Mark

AUs > Spirits and Spectres

universe (space story)

first draft > anxiety story

The Beginning

The Bleed

The Encounter

The House

The Many Happenings

The Start of Class

The Weekend

The Routine

The Upset

The Anger

The Breakdown

The Storm

The Insides

The Stars

Spontaneous Scenes > ree's name, new snowboots, synopsis, meet theo, not angel ree, exist without

Name Swap > The Entire Thing

petrichor > draft

Act 1 > prologue, Meet the Fam (Kena, Kyt, One Family), Meet the Crisis (Drying, Dying, Crying), Meet the Quest (Walking, Talking, Stalking)

Act 2 > Meet the City (New People, New World, New Status), Meet the Magic (Internal, External, Paternal), Meet the Curse (Implications, Characterizations, Explanations)

Act 3 > Meet the Wizard (Choosing Sides, Switching Sides, Inside-outside), Meet the Recipe (Seeking, Speaking, Sleeping), Meet the Choices (Storms, Silence, Savior)

Burn::Freeze > name replace

Scenes > real communication, sardha is angry, a god laughs

Collections > Fandoms

The 100 > Punctuation, Sage

Shadowhunters

Avengers

Chicago P.D. > Shots

Power Rangers

ATLA

Misc.

Other Stuff > dialogue prompts, conversation prompts, setting prompts, title prompts

poetry and prose > Directory

Archive > 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017-19, 2020

Modern Collections: ellipses of thought, wwafllhdwg, walls and windows, weary and wanting, colors and creation, the kinds of being, you without me, sometimes words, what I will give you, discord, same again, deadly delights, the unknown, a palette of wonder

The Book of Lost Lyrics > love lines, lonely lines

The Book of Lost Lines > short, collectionless

free edits > ghosty's song, deathdancer

writing thoughts > character, story

sleepy subtitles library > The Library

C Dramas > The Untamed (Blood series, character study), The Lost Tomb (The Sounds in Silence, Functions of a Heart, Shorts, Living Death series)

Thai Dramas > KP (constellation), Misc.

kboys > Crossovers (gang, food & fruit, meta-portal), TXT (apocalypse, angels?), Archive Kpop

and that's it! that all the docs. I did it very thoroughly this time, covered all the wips, the parts, the ideas, the fics and the poetry. I even left a few out because they are barely ideas and I'll never write them. they're just pages with names, so they don't count. anyway. um. I don't remember who did this during the last go-round of tags. so just ignore me if you've done this recently. @mel-writes-with-her-dragons @uraniumwriting @ettawritesnstudies @viskafrer @zoya-writes @oh-no-another-idea @writing-is-a-martial-art OR ANYBODY, of course, as always

And Dreamy, who always wants to snoop on what I'm writing @writingonesdreams

#tag game #writeblr games #sleepy stuff #sleepy writing

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prettyswellaus · 2 years

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Dreamworld AU

Genre: Adventure, Fantasy, Slice-Of-Life

Also Known As: Dream AU

Inspired by: Sleepycore and Yume-Kawaii aesthetics, Codename: KND, Little Twin Stars, Star Darlings, Care Bears and prismtheartweirdo’s Slumberworld AU.

Synopsis

High above the clouds, in a land called Stratos there lived a race of human-like creatures called the Somnians, who have the ability to enter the dreams of others, shape clouds, and use stars however they pleased. Their powers and technology rely on the power of good dreams.

They lived in peace and harmony…until The Night Terror, an incident that corrupted half the Somnian population into the nightmare-inducing Tantabi (tant-a-by) As well as one of the two Somnian leaders. But before said leader, known as Umbriel could plunge the rest of the Somnians in darkness, the other one, known as Boreali (Boar-ree-al) used her power to seal him away deep within The Prison of Arcus and sent the Tantabi to the dark, downtrodden island of Nimbotus .

However the prison cannot hold Umbriel forever, as he is fated to be released on the night of the blood moon, there he will assemble the Tantabi and take over Stratos. Boreali created a plan to purify the Umbriel and the Tantabi once and for all: A super weapon using the collected power of sweet dreams. But it won’t be easy, as the Tantabi will use there powers to sabotage once pleasant dreams.

And so Boreali enlists the help of 6 somnians: Edd, Tom, Tord, Matt, Blaze, and Dusk to stop the Tantabi from messing with the plan. All sorts of adventures await, both in Stratos, and in the world of dreams.

Information Posts

Characters

Somnians

Edd

Tom

Matt

Tord

Blaze

Dusk

Boreali

Tantabi

Eduardo

Jon

Mark

Jordan

Blade

Dawn

Umbriel

Locations

(list not finished yet)

The Treehouse

Stratos

Nimbotus

The Prison of Arcus

Lore

(list not finished yet)

About the Somnians

About the Tantabi

The Beginnings of Stratos

The Night Terror

The Dream Core and the Nightmare Core

Back to Directory

#dreamworld AU #eddsworld au #ew au #eddsworld #dream AU

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ambertrutharchive · 2 years

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Blog Directory

Note: This post will be regularly updated.

Resources Tag: A hub of books, websites, articles, and the like for abuse victims, whether it’s parents, partners, other relatives, etc.

Other Articles: Articles not strictly relating to the Depp v. Heard Trial and possibly pertaining to other abuse victims going through court cases

Articles Post: A list of articles specifically about the Amber Heard v Johnny Depp Trial

Other People to Support: A list of people who have faced abuse. Whether you send them a kind word or two, or follow them on their social medias, is up to you. Post 1,

Below the line is a list of posts correcting misinformation about Amber Heard one at a time, referencing the abuse she suffered from her ex-husband, and referencing the abusive and violent behavior Johnny Depp has exhibited.

False: Johnny Depp’s and Paul Bettany’s Texts Were a Reference to Monty Python

False: Amber Heard Abused Tasya van Ree

False: Amber Heard Stole Kate Jame’s Rape Story

False: Amber Heard Cut Off Johnny Depp’s Finger

False: Amber and the Bed Situation

#amber heard #pro amber heard #i stand with amber heard #i still stand with amber heard #johnny depp is a wife beater #johnny depp is an abuser #anti johnny depp #johnny depp

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yessadirichards · 3 months

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'In the Summers' and 'Porcelain War' win top prizes at Sundance Film Festival

PARK CITY, Utah

“In the Summers,” an affecting, years-spanning drama about a complicated parent-children relationship, nabbed the Grand Jury prize at the 40th Sundance Film Festival, while the top honor for documentary went to “Porcelain War,” about a Ukrainian couple who craft fragile, intricately painted ceramics while war rages around them.

Those two awards, announced Friday in Park City, Utah, both honored directorial debuts. “In the Summers,” written and directed by Alessandra Lacorazza, poetically follows an imperfect father and his daughters over nearly two decades. Lacorazza also won for directing.

“To the queers, to the Latin, to the immigrants, this is for you," said Lacorazza, a Colombian American filmmaker whose film is set in Las Cruces, New Mexico.

“Porcelain War,” which follows last year’s “20 Days in Mariupol” as a Sundance documentary prize-winner that captures the war in Ukraine, was made by Brendan Bellomo and Slava Leontyev.

“This award is because of the bravery of the people of Ukraine,” said Bellomo. “And this award is for the beauty of the people of Ukraine.”

“Sujo,” about an orphaned boy trying to escape the grip of Mexican cartel violence, took the Grand Jury prize for world dramatic cinema. “A New Kind of Wilderness,” about a Norwegian family living off the grid, won the jury award for world documentary.

The Festival Award, voted on by Sundance audiences, went to “Daughters,” Natalie Rae and Angela Patton’s moving documentary following four girls as they prepare for a special daddy-daughter dance with their imprisoned fathers. “Daughters” also won the audience award for U.S. documentary.

Sean Wang's “Dìdi,” a coming-of-age film about a 13-year-old Taiwanese American boy, took the audience award for U.S. dramatic film. “Dìdi” also won a juried award for its ensemble.

“Ibelin,” which was acquired by Netflix out of Sundance, won the audience award for world cinema documentary and a juried award for Benjamin Ree's direction. The film follows the story of Mats Steen, a Norwegian who died of a degenerative muscular disease at the age of 25. Only after his death did his parents discover how widely known and celebrated Steen was online for his personal blog and via World of Warcraft.

“Girls Will Be Girls,” about a Himalayan boarding school, won the audience award for world cinema drama. The Darren Aronofsky-produced “Little Death,” starring David Schwimmer as a TV writer, won the NEXT Innovator award. The NEXT audience award winner was the Irish drama “Kneecap,” about a Belfast rap trio, co-starring Michael Fassbender.

Award winners are available to stream on the festival's website through the close of Sundance on Sunday.

Sundance winners often go on to be some of the most acclaimed films of the year. Last year's festival produced Celine Song’s “Past Lives," nominated for best picture and best screenplay on Tuesday by the Academy Awards. Other Sundance titles to reach the Oscars include 2022 best picture-winner “CODA,”“Summer Of Soul (...Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised)” and “Minari.”

The 40th edition brought high-profile films including Jesse Eisenberg's well-received “A Real Pain,” starring him and Kieran Culkin; the Will Ferrell, Harper Steele road trip “Will & Harper"; and the emotional documentary “Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story.”

This year, “A Real Pain," which also picked up a screenwriting award for Eisenberg, was among the top sales, selling for $10 million to Searchlight Pictures. Neon acquired Steven Soderbergh's ghost story “Presence.” And the buzzy horror thriller “It's What's Inside" sold to Netflix for $17 million.

#yessadirichards

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craneduffy89 · 1 year

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Start of protective autophagy inside hepatocytes by simply rare metal nanorod core/silver layer nanostructures.

Methods and also Findings We methodically explored PubMed, Embase, ISI Net of info, MedCarib, Lilacs, REPIDISCA, DESASTRES, along with African Directory Medicus listings via Oct 27, The year 2013 without constraints in language or yr associated with newsletter. Studies ended up qualified to apply for inclusion when they noted a pace with the aftereffect of Rinse in trachoma, either active disease indicated by seen signs of trachomatous infection or even Chlamydia trachomatis infection clinically determined making use of PCR. We discovered 90 scientific studies which described a stride with the effect of Clean about trachoma. To evaluate examine good quality, we created a list of standards produced from the actual GRADE technique. Publication opinion was evaluated using route plots of land. When 3 or more studies documented measures regarding effect for the equivalent WASH direct exposure and also trachoma outcome, all of us executed any random-effects meta-analysis. All of us performed Fifteen meta-analyses for particular exposure-outcome twos. Access to sterilizing was related to lower trachoma because selleck chemical measured from the presence of trachomatous inflammation-follicular as well as trachomatous inflammation-intense (TF/TI) (possibilities percentage [OR] 2.Eighty-five, 95% CI 0.75-0.92) as well as H. trachomatis disease (OR 3.67, 95% CI Zero.55-0.Seventy eight). Using a clean encounter has been considerably linked to diminished probability of TF/TI (As well as 3.42, 95% CI 3.32-0.52), because ended up skin cleanness indicators lack of ocular discharge (Or perhaps 3.49, 95% CI 3.23-0.61) along with not enough nose eliminate (As well as Zero.62, 95% CI 3.52-0.Seventy two). Cosmetic cleanness indications were additionally related to diminished likelihood of D. trachomatis contamination: deficiency of ocular launch (As well as Zero.Forty, 95% CI 2.31-0.Forty-nine) as well as deficiency of nasal discharge (As well as 3.56, 95% CI 3.37-0.Seventy six). Various other cleanliness factors seen to be significantly connected with diminished TF/TI included encounter laundering at least one time every day (As well as 3.Seventy six, 95% CI Zero.57-0.Ninety-six), deal with laundering at least twice day-to-day (Or perhaps 3.80, 95% CI 3.80-0.Ninety), cleansing soap make use of (Or perhaps Zero.Seventy-six, 95% CI 0.59-0.95), soft towel use (Or perhaps 3.Sixty five, 95% CI 0.53-0.81), along with every day swimming methods (Or even 2.Seventy-six, 95% CI 0.53-0.99). Dwelling within just One kilometer of the water resource was not discovered to be considerably connected with TF/TI or C. trachomatis an infection, as well as the using cleanliness facilities had not been found to be drastically connected with TF/TI. Conclusions We all located strong data to aid F ree p and also Electronic aspects of the actual Risk-free method. Though limitations incorporated moderate to higher heterogenity, minimal research high quality, along with the not enough normal definitions, these findings secure the significance of Rinse in trachoma elimination tactics and the requirement for the continuing development of standard strategies to calibrating Rinse within trachoma handle programs.Please see afterwards within the write-up for that Editors' Synopsis Editors' Overview Track record Trachoma is often a microbe vision contamination, which when left unattended may lead to irreparable blindness.

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raybizzle · 1 year

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findsave54 · 2 years

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Thymoquinone triggers apoptosis along with Genetics injury in 5-Afatinib-resistant intestines cancers stem/progenitor tissues

HPV can be a stronger prognostic marker as compared to VEGF as well as EGFR inside tonsillar SCCs. VEGF correlates using MVD during these tumours.Purpose: Petrol metallic arc welding is really a traditionally used technique in many commercial places. In this examine, the side-line bloodstream lymphocytes associated with Twenty-three welders and also Twenty-five nonexposed topics ended up monitored pertaining to genotoxicity. Materials and methods: The actual blood samples obtained from the subjects were incubated which has a lifestyle channel at 37 diplomas D with regard to Seventy two they would. Cytochalasin-B and BrdU had been included regarding micronucleus and copying catalog. Following incubation, the actual nationalities have been collected, stained, and examined. Results: The micronucleus charge (Two.165 +/- One.645) of the welders has been really above that of people certainly not subjected #Link# (1.352 +/- 3.978) (R < 0.01). There were a significant distinction between micronucleus charges regarding smoking cigarettes and nonsmoking themes. It was discovered that because the duration of experience welding smells elevated, consequently did the particular micronucleus rates (Only two.938 +/- A single.723) (R < 0.05). A positive link ended up being witnessed between micronucleus consistency as well as grow older. The replication directory price (One.026 +/- Zero.020) in the welders had been more than those of those certainly not open (A single.019 +/- 2.016) (P Equates to 0.10). Conclusion: It is suggested that will welders which work with gas metal #Link# arc welding become directed which needed protective measures be used as a result of chance due to material arc welding smells.With this work, the actual antisolvent membrane layer crystallization procedure has been used just to walk the actual polymorphic composition in the crystallization associated with L-histidine. When perfectly dosing the quantity of ethanol from the crystallizing remedy. simply by making the correct trans-membrane fluctuation. the actual structure with the precipitate changes regularly from your frequency in the thermodynamic dependable polymorph Any towards the predominance with the metastable period T. Kind A deposits will almost always be the first person to nucleate. therefore subsequent a good "anti-Ostwald rule" habits and in agreement along with traditional nucleation principle previsions. Nevertheless, because the antisolvent content is higher than a new limit restriction, the amount of period #Link# A new crystals gradually lowers as well as the 1st weak nucleation is Followed by an extra substantial creation of a new powdered ingredients with the polymorph B. The past occasion backward and forward events minimizes as the antisolvent dosing flux raises. This particular end result could possibly be on account of I combined impact gas the actual nucleation along with progress prices in the event the quantity of ethanol is higher than the particular crucial benefit. Zero significant tissue layer fouling has been witnessed in the duration of your findings, along with secure fluxes have been seen. A small increase in tissue layer leaks in the structure, as a result of diminished hydrophobicity when using a top initial amount of ethanol, ended up being witnessed.Target. To compare the end results upon teeth enamel demineralization and fluoride (F ree p) storage regarding 2 diverse brushing-rinsing routines.

#Dihydrotestosterone #Afatinib #Dupracetam

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bootmemory0 · 2 years

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EFFECT OF PHOTOFluorouracilMODULATION ASSOCIATED WITH CELL THERAPY While CUTANEOUS Renewal Inside 3 rd Amount Uses up Inside Rodents

These kinds of outcomes may reveal in which inactivated vaccine failed to completely prevent the contamination, although it ended up being capable of guarding chickens in opposition to scientific indicators and also significantly diminished virus-like titers throughout voice #Link# following intranasal obstacle.Nivalenol (NIV) along with deoxynivalenol (Put on) are usually main Fusarium-producing mycotoxins within grains, that are primarily produced by Fusarium asiaticum and also F ree p. graminearum. NIV is located in nearly all of cereal products produced in South korea, nevertheless the innate cause for NIV production simply by Y. asiaticum will not be extensively investigated. Within this review, 12 body's genes belonging to the trichothecene biosynthetic gene chaos have been in comparison with the transcriptional stage in between two NIV-producing F ree p. asiaticum and 4 DON-producing F ree p. graminearum traces. Substance investigation revealed that time-course toxin creation habits above 14 days would not vary between NIV and Add strains, excluding F. asiaticum R308, which was a low NIV maker. Equally quantitative real-time polymerase sequence of events as well as Northern analysis revealed that the majority of Attempt gene records peaked in day time 2 in NW as well as Add companies, that is A couple of days sooner than trichothecene accumulation within fluid medium. Assessment from the gene term single profiles determined the NW-specific structure by 50 % transcription factor-encoding TRI genetics (TRI6 and also TRI10) and also TRI101, which confirmed a pair of gene term highs in the course of both the early on and also overdue incubation times. In addition, the quantity of trichothecenes manufactured by equally Add and also NIV suppliers have been related together with the phrase numbers of Attempt genetics, regardless of the trichothecene chemotypes. Consequently, the reduced output of North west simply by 11308 in comparison to North west or perhaps Wear with the additional stresses might be as a result of your drastically reduce phrase levels of the Attempt body's genes, that revealed first appearance styles #Link# .Goal: The objective of the present examine is usually to measure the effectiveness #Link# of slower zinc oxide (Zn) launch from beta-tricalcium phosphate powdered (ZnTCP) that contain Ten mol% Zn about subjects together with winter melts away. Strategies: The first-aid taping solutions were comprised zinc oxide sulfate (ZnSO4) answer, ZnTCP suspensions or zinc lotion. Soon after cold weather melt away treatments had been carried out about Zn-deficient rodents, the groups D1, D2 along with D3 were treated with tapes that contains ZnTCP, ZnSO4 as well as zinc oxide cream. The effects from the videos on wound location, plasma Zn amounts and alkaline phosphatase task (Alp) had been researched. Outcomes: The particular wound area users of most rat groups could be broken into before the scab creation at around morning Half a dozen. The location underneath the contour (Aw-AUC) pertaining to wound area information, consequently, had been assessed as an directory associated with therapeutic ratings for the energy hurt. The transaction involving Aw-AUC was D3 bigger when compared with C bigger than D2 bigger as compared to D1. The degree of growth on the original point through winter uses up of group D1 was the minimum and that involving class D2 ended up being the greatest, and the buy has been D1 smaller than D3 smaller than C smaller compared to D2. Findings: ZnTCP therapy could control the initial infection caused by cold weather burns.

#Adagrasib #Fluorouracil #methylhexanamine

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lionsnow61 · 2 years

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Enhancing Bioavailability associated with Nutraceutically Utilised Adriamycin as well as other Stilbenoids

Heat-labile enterotoxin action had been established while using the Y1 adrenal mobile assay, bunny ileal trap along with #Link# adenylate cyclase initial assessments. Regional phenotypic along with genotypic depiction could help in order to elucidate the particular ecology and also pathogenicity of ETEC to be able to proficiently reduce the stress regarding disease because of ETEC. This research may result in development of efficient prophylactic actions.The opportunity to reversibly switch from the hydrophobic Cassie state as well as a hydrophilic Wenzel state can often be extremely hard about textured materials due to energy barriers which in turn originate from the particular geometry of the microstructure. In this papers, many of us directory a fairly easy microstructure geometry that allows an aqueous droplet to get reversibly turned involving these types of declares from the putting on electrowetting. All of us show relatively easy to fix electrowetting in air about microstructured surfaces comprising simultaneous corrugations as well as demonstrate that this particular geometry could be engineered to produce a Cassie condition and is electronically governed to change to a Wenzel wetting condition possessing substantial bond. When the electrical industry ended up being removed, many of us seen natural dewetting along the corrugations because the droplet moved on through the Wenzel condition time for a Cassie state.Within '83, cellular toxicologists through the Nordic countries produced the actual Scandinavian Community for Cell Toxicology, the actual SSCT, around the gumption of the Swedish mobile or portable toxicologist Bjorn Ekwall, 1940-2000. The actual tasks with the Community have been established: to prepare annual group meetings for toxicologists to debate as well as promote the research into results of substances inside cell designs also to handle the responsibility with regard to performing a big global study. The other quest ended up being concretized available as your Multicentre Look at Throughout vitro Cytotoxicity, that is certainly, the actual MEIC system, directed simply by W. Ekwall, with an look at your predictive benefit pertaining to human toxicity of within vitro cytotoxicity checks.Just lately all of us reported the first known occurrence regarding antibodies having catalytic sialidase task #Link# (sialidase abzymes) within the solution involving people using several myeloma and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). These antibodies desialylate biomolecules, like glycoproteins, gangliosides and crimson bloodstream cellular material. Desialylation regarding passing away tissues was shown to aid apoptotic mobile clearance. Within this examine many of us considered the possibility to help passing away mobile settlement by using F ree p(abdominal)(A couple of) pieces associated with sialidase abzymes. A couple of options for sialidase abzymes were used: (i) people remote coming from sera associated with patients together with SLE soon after original testing of a cohort involving people with regard to sialidase action; and (two) simply by producing the brought on sialidase abzyme via immunization of the rabbit with synthetic hapten including a non-hydrolysable analogue involving sialidase impulse conjugated together with bovine solution albumin (BSA) as well as keyhole limpet haemocyanin (KLH). Antibodies ended up filtered by simply ammonium sulphate rainfall, protein-G love chromatography and also dimensions exclusion-high efficiency fluid chromatography (HPLC-SEC). Aftereffect of desialylation upon efferocytosis was researched utilizing individual polymorphonuclear leucocytes (PMN), equally feasible as well as aged, since prey, as well as human monocyte-derived macrophages (MoMa). Management of apoptotic and workable prey with disease-associated (purified via bloodstream solution of SLE patients) and immunization-induced (attained simply by immunization associated with rabbits) sialidase abzymes, its F ree p(abdominal)(Only two) fragment and also microbial neuraminidase (as positive control) get drastically superior the actual settlement associated with food by simply macrophages. We all determine #Link# that sialidase abzyme functions as a protective realtor inside auto-immune individuals and that unnatural abzymes may be of potential restorative value.

#5-Fluorouracil #Adriamycin #Rilmenidine Phosphate

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piecksz · 3 years

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THIS BLOG CONTAINS AND INTERACTS WITH DARK CONTENT. MINORS DO NOT INTERACT.

DIRECTORY ! about me rules library taglist

GALLERY !

￫ monomania. (armin arlert)

￫ automatic. (eren yeager)

WORKSHOP !

dirty money | part ten : 50 ٪ complete

ະ BLOG TAGS !

#ree-mail: asks & inbox

#dm asks♥︎: asks about dirty money

#reereads: my blog recommendations

#reesanimerecs: my anime recommendations

#navigation #navi #info

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books0977 · 3 years

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The Castle of the Tuileries, Or, A Narrative of All the Events Which Have Taken Place in the Interior of That Palace From the Time of Its Construction to the Eighteenth Brumaire of the Year VIII. Pierre-Joseph-Alexis Roussel. Translated from the French by Francis Lathom. London: Printed for T. N. Longman and O. Rees, Paternoster-Row, 1803. First edition in English.

A translation of LE CHÂTEAU DES TUILERIES (Paris 1802). The eighteenth Brumaire VIII (9 November 1799) was the day on which the Directory was overthrown and Napoleon established his supremacy. Roussel is the subject of some controversy concerning his seemingly anti-republican and antifeminist depiction of the Society of Revolutionary Republican Women, and he has been accused of refashioning revolutionary history to suit the political times of the Napoleonic era.

#The Castle of the Tuileries #Pierre-Joseph-Alexis Roussel #Francis Lathom #first edition in English

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popculty · 3 years

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52 Films by Women: 2020 Edition

Another annual challenge complete!

Last year, I focused on diversifying my list. This year I kept that intention but focused on watching more non-American films and films from the 20th century. Specifically, I sought out Agnès Varda’s entire filmography, after her death in 2019. (I was not disappointed - What a filmmaking legend we lost.)

I also kept a film log for the first time and have included some of my thoughts on several films from that log. I made a point of including reviews both positive and negative, because I think it’s important to acknowledge the variability and breadth of the canon, so as not to put every film directed by a woman on a pedestal. (Although movies directed by women must clear a much higher bar to be greenlit, meaning generally higher quality...But that’s an essay for another day :)

* = directed by a woman of color

bold = fave

1. The Rhythm Section (2020) dir. Reed Morano - Not as good as it could have been, given Morano’s proven skill behind the camera, but also not nearly as bad as the critics made it out to be. And unbelievably refreshing to see a female revenge story not driven by sexual assault or the loss of a husband/child.

2. Cléo de 5 à 7 (1962) dir. Agnès Varda - If you ever wanted to take a real-time tour of Paris circa 1960, this is the film for you.

3. Little Women (2019) dir. Greta Gerwig - Still my favorite Little Women adaptation. I will re-watch it every year and cry.

4. Varda by Agnès (2019) dir. Agnès Varda & Didier Rouget

5. Booksmart (2019) dir. Olivia Wilde - An instant classic high school comedy romp that subverts all the gross tropes of its 1980s predecessors.

6. Girls of the Sun (2018) dir. Eva Husson

7. Blue My Mind (2017) dir. Lisa Brühlmann

8. Portrait of a Lady On Fire (2019) dir. Céline Sciamma - Believe the hype. This film is a master thesis on the female gaze, and also just really effing gorgeous.

9. Belle Epine (2010) dir. Rebecca Zlotowski

10. Vamps (2012) dir. Amy Heckerling - With Krysten Ritter and Alicia Silverstone as modern-day vampires, I was so ready for this movie. But it feels like a bad stage play or a sit-com that’s missing a laugh-track. Bummer.

11. *Birds of Prey (2020) dir. Cathy Yan - Where has this movie been all our lives?? Skip the next onslaught of Snyder-verse grim-darkery and give me two more of these STAT!

12. She’s Missing (2019) dir. Alexandra McGuinness

13. The Mustang (2019) dir. Laure de Clermont-Tonnere - Trigger warning for the “protagonist” repeatedly punching a horse in the chest. I noped right out of there.

14. Monster (2003) dir. Patty Jenkins – I first watched this movie when I was probably too young and haven’t revisited it since. The rape scene traumatized me as a kid, but as an adult I appreciate how that trauma is not the center of the movie, or even of Aileen’s life. Everyone still talks about how Charlize “went ugly” for this role, but the biggest transformation here isn’t aesthetic, it’s physical – the way Theron replicates Wuernos’ mannerisms, way of speaking, and physicality. That’s why she won the Oscar. I also love that Jenkins calls the film “Monster” (which everyone labels Aileen), but then actually uses it to tell the story of how she fell in love with a woman when she was at her lowest, and that saved her. That’s kind of beautiful, and I’m glad I re-watched it so that I could see the story in that light, instead of the general memory I had of it being a good, feel-bad movie. It’s so much more than that.

15. Water Lilies (2007) dir. Céline Sciamma – Sciamma’s screenwriting and directorial debut, the first in her trilogy on youth, is as painfully beautiful as its sequels (Tomboy and Girlhood). It’s also one of the rare films that explores the overlap of queerness and girl friendships.

16. The Trouble with Angels (1966) dir. Ida Lupino – Movies about shenanigan-based female friendships are such rare delights. Rosalind Russel is divine as Mother Superior, and Hayley Mills as “scathingly brilliant” as the pranks she plays on her. Ida Lupino’s skill as an editor only enhances her directing, providing some truly iconic visual gags to complement dialogue snappy enough for Gilmore Girls.

17. Vagabond (1985) dir. Agnès Varda – Shot with a haunting realism, this film has no qualms about its heroine’s inevitable, unceremonious death, which it opens with, matter-of-factly, before retracing her final (literal) steps to the road-side ditch she ends up in. (I’m partly convinced said heroine was the inspiration for Sarah Manning in Orphan Black.)

18. One Sings, The Other Doesn’t (1977) dir. Agnès Varda – Probably my favorite classic Varda, this film feels incredibly personal. It’s essentially a love story about two best friends with very different lives. For an indie made in the ‘70s, the diversity, scope, and themes of the film are impressive. Even if the second half a drags a bit, the first half is absolute perfection, engaging the viewer immediately, and clipping along, sprinkling in some great original songs that were way progressive for their time (about abortion, female bodily autonomy, etc) and could still be considered “bangers” today.

19. Emma (2020) dir. Autumn de Wilde

20. Black Panthers (1969) dir. Agnès Varda

21. Into the Forest (2016) dir. Patricia Rozema - When the world was ending (i.e. the pandemic hit) this was the first movie I turned to - a quiet, meditative story of two sisters (Elliot Page and Evan Rachel Wood) surviving off the land after a sudden global blackout. Four years later, it’s still one of my favorite book-to-screen adaptations. I fondly remember speaking with director Patricia Rozema at the 2016 Chicago Critics Film Festival after a screening, her love for the source material and desire to “get it right” so apparent. I assured her then, and reaffirm now, that she really did.

22. City of Trees (2019) dir. Alexandra Swarens

23. Never Rarely Sometimes Always (2020) dir. Eliza Hittmann - To call this a harrowing and deeply personal journey of a sixteen-year-old who must cross state lines to get an abortion would be accurate, but incomplete. It is a story so much bigger than that, about the myriad ways women’s bodies and boundaries are constantly violated.

24. Paradise Hills (2019) dir. Alice Waddington

25. *Eve’s Bayou (1996) dir. Kasi Lemmons – I’ve been meaning to watch Kasi Lemmons’ directorial debut for many years now, and I’m so glad I finally have, because it fully deserves its icon status, beyond being one of the first major films directed by a black woman. Baby Jurnee Smollett's talent was immediately recognizable, and she has reminded us of it in Birds of Prey and Lovecraft Country this year. If merit was genuinely a factor for Oscar contenders, she would have taken home gold at eleven years old. Beasts of the Southern Wild has been one of my all-time favorites, but now I realize that most of my appreciation for that movie actually goes to Lemmons for blazing the trail with her story of a young black girl from the bayou first. It’s also a surprisingly dark story about memory and abuse and familial relationships that cross lines - really gutsy and surprising themes, especially for the ‘90s.

26. Blow the Man Down (2019) dir. Bridget Savage Cole & Danielle Krudy - Come and get your sea shanty fix!

27. Touchy Feely (2013) dir. Lynn Shelton - R.I.P. :(

28. Hannah Gadsby: Douglas (2020) dir. Madeleine Parry - If you thought Gadsby couldn’t follow up 2018′s sensational Nanette with a comedy special just as sharp and hilarious, you would have been sorely mistaken.

29. Girlhood (2013) dir. Céline Sciamma

30. Breathe (2014) dir. Mélanie Laurent

31. *A Dry White Season (1989) dir. Euzhan Palcy

32. Laggies (2014) dir. Lynn Shelton

33. *The Old Guard (2020) dir. Gina Prince-Bythewood – Everything I’ve ever wanted in an action movie: Immortal gays, Charlize Theron wielding a labrys (battle axe), kinetic fight choreography I haven’t seen since the last Bond movie…Watched it twice, then devoured the comics it was adapted from, and I gotta say: in the hands of black women, it eclipses the source material. Cannot wait for the just-announced sequel.

34. Morvern Callar (2002) dir. Lynn Ramsay

35. Shirley (2020) dir. Josephine Decker

36. *Radioactive (2019) dir. Marjane Satrapi – The story is obviously well worth telling and the narrative structure – weaving in the future consequences of Curie’s discoveries – is clever, but a bit awkwardly executed and overly manipulative. There are glimpses of real brilliance throughout, but it feels as if the director’s vision was not fully realized, to my great disappointment. Nonetheless, I appreciated seeing Marie Curie's story being told by a female director and embodied by the always wonderful Rosamund Pike.

37. *The Half of It (2020) dir. Alice Wu - I feel like a real scrooge for saying this, but this movie did nothing for me. Nothing about it felt fresh, authentic or relatable. A real disappointment from the filmmaker behind the wlw classic Saving Face.

38. Mouthpiece (2018) dir. Patricia Rozema - I am absolutely floored. One of those films that makes you fall in love with the art form all over again. Patricia Rozema continues to prove herself one of the most creatively ambitious and insightful directors of our time, with this melancholic meditation on maternal grief and a woman’s duality.

39. Summerland (2020) dir. Jessica Swale - The rare period wlw love story that is not a) all-white or b) tragedy porn. Just lovely.

40. *The Last Thing He Wanted (2020) dir. Dee Rees – As rumored, a mess. Even by the end, I still couldn’t tell you who any of the characters are. Dee, we know you’re so much better than this! (see: Mudbound, Pariah)

41. *Cuties (2020) dir. Maïmouna Doucouré – I watched this film to 1) support a black woman director who has been getting death threats for her work and 2) see what all the fuss is about. While I do think there were possibly some directorial choices that could have saved quite a bit of the pearl-clutching, overall, I didn’t find it overly-exploitative or gross, as many (who obviously haven’t actually watched the film) have labeled it. It certainly does give me pause, though, and makes me wonder whether children can ever be put in front of a camera without it exploiting or causing harm to them in some way. It also makes one consider the blurry line between being a critique versus being an example. File this one under complicated, for sure.

42. A Call to Spy (2019) Lydia Dean Pilcher – An incredible true story of female spies during WWII that perfectly satisfied my itch for British period drama/spy thriller and taught me so much herstory I didn’t know.

43. Kajillionaire (2020) dir. Miranda July - I was lucky enough to attend the (virtual) premiere of this film, followed by an insightful cast/director Q&A, which only made me appreciate it more. July's offbeat dark comedy about a family of con artists is queerer and more heartfelt than it has any right to be, and a needed reprieve in a year of almost entirely white wlw stories. The family's shenanigans are the hook, but it's the budding relationship between Old Dolio (an almost unrecognizable Evan Rachel Wood) and aspiring grifter Melanie (the luminous Gina Rodriguez) that is the heart of the story.

44. Misbehaviour (2020) dir. Philippa Lowthorpe – Again, teaching me herstory I didn’t know, about how the Women’s Liberation Movement stormed the 1970 Miss World Pageant. Keira Knightley and Gugu Mbatha-Raw’s characters have a conversation in a bathroom at the end of the film that perfectly eviscerates well-meaning yet ignorant white feminism, without ever pitting women against each other - a feat I didn’t think was possible. I also didn’t think it was possible to critique the male gaze without showing it (*ahem Cuties, Bombshell, etc*), but this again, invents a way to do it. Bless women directors.

45. *All In: The Fight for Democracy (2020) dir. Liz Garbus and Lisa Cortes – 2020’s 13th. Thank god for Stacey Abrams, that is all.

46. *The 40-Year-Old Version (2020) dir. Radha Blank – This scene right here? I felt that in my soul. This whole film is so good and funny and heartfelt and relatable to any artist trying to walk that tightrope of “making it” while not selling their soul to make it. My only initial semi-note was that it’s a little long, but after hearing Radha Blank talk about how she fought for the two-hour run-time as a way of reclaiming space for older black women, I take it back. She’s right: Let black women take up space. Let her movie be as long as she wants it to be. GOOD FOR HER.

47. Happiest Season (2020) dir. Clea Duvall - Hoooo boy. What was marketed as the first lesbian Christmas rom-com is actually a horror movie for anyone who’s ever had to come out. Throw in casual racism and a toxic relationship treated as otp, and it’s YIKES on so many levels. Aubrey Plaza, Dan Levy, and an autistic-coded Jane are the only (underused) highlights.

48. *Monkey Beach (2020) dir. Loretta Todd

49. *Little Chief (2020) dir. Erica Tremblay – A short film part of the 2020 Red Nation Film Festival, it’s a perfect eleven minutes that I wish had gone on longer, if only to bask in Lily Gladstone in a leading role.

50. First Cow (2019) dir. Kelly Reichardt – I know Kelly Reichardt’s style, so I’ll admit-- even as I was preparing for an excellent film, I was also reaching for my phone, planning on only half paying attention during all the inevitable 30-second shots of grass blowing in the wind. (And yes, there are plenty of those.) But twenty minutes in, my phone was set aside and forgotten, as I am getting sucked into this beautiful story about two frontiersman trying to live their best domestic life.There is only one word to describe this film and that is: PURE. I’ve never seen such a tender platonic relationship between men on screen before, and it’s not lost on me that it took a woman to show us that tenderness. Reichardt gives us two men brought together by fate, and kept together by a shared dream and the simple pleasure of not being alone in such a hard world; two men who spend their days cooking, trapping, baking, and dreaming of a better life; two men who don’t say much, but feel everything for each other. The world would be a much better place if men showed us this kind of vulnerability and friendship toward each other. Oh, and it’s also a brutal take-down of capitalism and the myth of the American Dream!

51. Wonder Woman 1984 (2020) dir. Patty Jenkins - My most-anticipated film for the past two years was...well, a mixed bag, to say the least. Too many thoughts on it for a blog post, so stay tuned for the upcoming podcast ep where we go all in ;)

52. *Selah and the Spades (2019) dir. Tayarisha Poe

I hope this gives you some ideas to kick off your new year with a resolution to support more female directors!

What were your favorite women-directed movies of last year? Let me know in the tags, comments, or asks!

#finally finished this #52 films by women #2020 #writing #movies #movie reviews #orig

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fuckyeahwomenfilmdirectors · 4 years

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My 52 Favourite Films of the Decade 2010-2019: The Complete List

Random stats:

52 movies chosen directed by a total of 57 directors. 5 directing duos, 4 of which consisted of a woman-man directing duo. Only 1 directing duo was made up of 2 women.

American cinema dominated with 28 films. I went with the country listings as provided by IMDB which leads to some strange results like how 2 Days in New York, filmed and set entirely in NYC is not a U.S. production but Wadjda, filmed entirely in Saudi Arabia is (it’s something to do with who gives money, don’t ask me how it’s calculated). This was followed by French cinema with 10 films and Israeli cinema (4 films) and then a smattering of other countries.

15 directorial debuts. The high number didn’t surprise me so much. Studies have been done and it’s often much harder for women directors to make a second film than make their debut. Actually when it comes to the debut directors on my list about half have had runaway success and put out at least one or more films already, a handful have moved into TV work and a handful seem to have disappeared which is depressing. What did please me is how many films were 3rd, 4th, 10th or more films proving that there are women directors with long careers who just keep getting better.

5 documentaries. I always think of myself as someone who doesn’t like documentaries so this seemed surprisingly high for me.

2 sequels both of which I liked better than their predecessors and both of which I think stand completely on their own.

2 films by directors who are no longer with us. Thank you Agnès Varda and Ronit Elkabetz.

0 repeat directors. This mostly worked out that way naturally. The directors who came the closest to having 2 films on the list were Debra Granik (Winter’s Bone missed out) and Céline Sciamma (for Girlhood), both of which were ultimately fairly easy to cut.

The List:

2 Days in New York dir. Julie Delpy (2012)

Amour Fou dir. Jessica Hausner (2014)

The Babadook dir. Jennifer Kent (2014)

Beach Rats dir. Eliza Hittman (2017)

Cameraperson dir. Kirsten Johnson (2016)

Clip dir. Maja Milos (2012)

Declaration of War dir. Valérie Donzelli (2011)

Divines dir. Houda Benyamina (2016)

The Edge of Democracy dir. Petra Costa (2019)

The Edge of Seventeen dir. Kelly Fremon Craig (2016)

Enough Said dir. Nicole Holofcener (2013)

Faces, Places dir. Agnès Varda & JR (2017)

The Farewell dir. Lulu Wang (2019)

A Film Unfinished dir. Yael Hersonski (2010)`

Fill the Void dir. Rama Burshtein (2012)

The Fits dir. Anna Rose Holmer (2015)

Fort Tilden dir. Sarah Violet Bliss & Charles Rogers (2014)

Gett: The Trial of Viviane Amsalem dir. Shlomi Elkabetz & Ronit Elkabetz (2014)

A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night dir. Ana Lily Amirpour (2014)

Hustlers dir. Lorene Scafaria (2019)

I Think We’re Alone Now dir. Reed Morano (2018)

The Kindergarten Teacher dir. Sara Colangelo (2018)

Last Night dir. Massy Tadjedin (2010)

Leave No Trace dir. Debra Granik (2018)

Little Forest dir. Yim Soon-rye (2018)

The Loneliest Planet dir. Julia Loktev (2011)

Lore dir. Cate Shortland (2012)

Lost in Paris dir. Dominique Abel & Fiona Gordon (2016)

The Love Witch dir. Anna Biller (2016)

Meek’s Cutoff dir. Kelly Reichardt (2010)

Middle of Nowhere dir. Ava DuVernay (2012)

Mudbound dir. Dee Rees (2017)

Obvious Child dir. Gillian Robespierre (2014)

On Body and Soul dir. Ildikó Enyedi (2017)

Palo Alto dir. Gia Coppola (2013)

Portrait of a Lady on Fire dir. Céline Sciamma (2019)

Private Life dir. Tamara Jenkins (2018)

Raw dir. Julia Ducournau (2016)

Songs My Brothers Taught Me dir. Chloé Zhao (2015)

Stories We Tell dir. Sarah Polley (2012)

Their Finest dir. Lone Scherfig (2016)

Things to Come dir. Mia Hansen-Løve (2016)

Toni Erdmann dir. Maren Ade (2016)

Vamps dir. Amy Heckerling (2012)

Vazante dir. Daniela Thomas (2017)

Wadjda dir. Haifaa al-Mansour (2012)

Wonder Woman dir. Patty Jenkins (2017)

The Wonders dir. Alice Rohrwacher (2014)

Woodshock dir. Laura & Kate Mulleavy (2017)

You Were Never Really Here dir. Lynne Ramsay (2017)

Zero Dark Thirty dir. Kathryn Bigelow (2012)

Zero Motivation dir. Talya Lavie (2014)

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letterboxd · 3 years

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Best of Sundance 2021.

From pandemic-era stories, via portraits of grief, to the serendipitous 1969 trilogy, the Letterboxd crew recaps our favorite films from the first major festival of the year.

Sundance heralds a new season of storytelling, with insights into what’s concerning filmmakers at present, and what artistic innovations may be on the horizon. As with every film festival, there were spooky coincidences and intersecting themes, whether it was a proliferation of pandemic-era stories, or extraordinary portraits of women working through grief (Land, Hive, The World to Come), or the incredible serendipity of the festival’s ‘1969 trilogy’, covering pivotal moments in Black American history: Summer of Soul (...Or When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised), Judas and the Black Messiah and the joyful Street Gang: How We Got to Sesame Street.

The hybrid model of this year’s Sundance meant more film lovers across the United States—a record number of you, in fact—‘attended’ the prestigious indie showcase. Our Festiville team (Gemma Gracewood, Aaron Yap, Ella Kemp, Selome Hailu, Jack Moulton and Dominic Corry) scanned your Letterboxd reviews and compared them with our notes to arrive at these seventeen feature-length documentary and narrative picks from Sundance 2021. There are plenty more we enjoyed, but these are the films we can’t stop thinking about.

Documentary features

Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) Directed by Ahmir-Khalib Thompson (AKA Questlove)

One hot summer five decades ago, there was a free concert series at a park in Harlem. It was huge, and it was lovely, and then it was forgotten. The Harlem Cultural Festival of 1969 brought together some of the world’s most beloved Black artists to connect with Black audiences. The star power and the size of the crowds alone should have been enough to immortalize the event à la Woodstock—which happened the same summer, the film emphasizes. But no one cared to buy up the footage until Ahmir-Khalib Thompson, better known as Questlove, came along.

It would have been easy to oversimplify such a rich archive by stringing together the performances, seeking out some talking heads, and calling it a day. But Questlove was both careful and ebullient in his approach. “Summer of Soul is a monumental concert documentary and a fantastic piece of reclaimed archived footage. There is perhaps no one better suited to curate this essential footage than Questlove, whose expertise and passion for the music shines through,” writes Matthew on Letterboxd. The film is inventive with its use of present interviews, bringing in both artists and attendees not just to speak on their experiences, but to react to and relive the footage. The director reaches past the festival itself, providing thorough social context that takes in the moon landing, the assassinations of Black political figures, and more. By overlapping different styles of documentary filmmaking, Questlove’s directorial debut embraces the breadth and simultaneity of Black resilience and joy. A deserving winner of both the Grand Jury and Audience awards (and many of our unofficial Letterboxd awards). —SH

Flee Directed by Jonas Poher Rasmussen

Flee is the type of discovery Sundance is designed for. Danish documentarian Jonas Poher Rasmussen tells the poignant story of his close friend and former classmate (using the pseudonym ‘Amin Nawabi’) and his daring escape from persecution in 1990s Afghanistan. Rasmussen always approaches tender topics with sensitivity and takes further steps to protect his friend’s identity by illustrating the film almost entirely in immersive animation, following in the footsteps of Waltz With Bashir and Tower. It’s a film aware of its subjectivity, allowing the animated scenes to alternate between the playful joy of nostalgia and the mournful pain of an unforgettable memory. However, these are intercepted by dramatic archive footage that oppressively brings the reality home.

“Remarkably singular, yet that is what makes it so universal,” writes Paul. “So many ugly truths about the immigration experience—the impossible choices forced upon people, and the inability to really be able to explain all of it to people in your new life… You can hear the longing in his voice, the fear in his whisper. Some don’t get the easy path.” Winner of the World Cinema (Documentary) Grand Jury Prize and quickly acquired by Neon, Flee is guaranteed to be a film you’ll hear a lot about for the rest of 2021. —JM

Taming the Garden Directed by Salomé Jashi

There’s always a moment at a film festival when fatigue sets in, when the empathy machine overwhelms, and when I hit that moment in 2021, I took the advice of filmmaker and Sundance veteran Jim Cummings, who told us: “If you’re ever stressed or tired, watch a documentary to reset yourself.” Taming the Garden wasn’t initially on my hit-list, but it’s one of those moments when the ‘close your eyes and point at a random title’ trick paid off. Documentary director Salomé Jashi does the Lorax’s work, documenting the impact and grief caused by billionaire former Georgian PM Bidzina Ivanishvili’s obsession with collecting ancient trees for his private arboretum.

“A movie that is strangely both infuriating and relaxing” writes Todd, of the long, locked-off wide shots showing the intense process of removing large, old trees from their village homes. There’s no narration, instead Jashi eavesdrops on locals as they gossip about Ivanishvili, argue about whether the money is worth it, and a feisty, irritated 90-year-old warns of the impending environmental fallout. “What you get out of it is absolutely proportional to what you put into it,” writes David, who recommends this film get the IMAX treatment. It’s arboriculture as ASMR, the timeline cleanse my Sundance needed. The extraordinary images of treasured trees being barged across the sea will become iconic. —GG

The Most Beautiful Boy in the World Directed by Kristian Petri and Kristina Lindström

Where Taming the Garden succeeds through pure observation, The Most Beautiful Boy in the World relies on the complete participation of its title subject, actor Björn Andrésen, who was thrust into the spotlight as a teenager. Cast by Italian director Lucino Visconti in Death in Venice, a 1971 adaptation of Thomas Mann’s novella about obsession and fatal longing, Andrésen spent the 1970s as an object of lust, with a side-gig as a blonde pop star in Japan, inspiring many manga artists along the way.

As we know by now (Alex Winter’s Showbiz Kids is a handy companion to this film), young stardom comes at a price, one that Andrésen was not well-placed to pay even before his fateful audition for Visconti. But he’s still alive, still acting (he’s Dan in Midsommar), and ready to face the mysteries of his past. Like Benjamin Ree’s excellent The Painter and the Thief from last year, this documentary is a constantly unfolding detective story, notable for great archive footage, and a deep kindness towards its reticent yet wide-open subject. —GG

All Light, Everywhere Directed by Theo Anthony

Threading the blind spots between Étienne-Jules Marey’s 19th-century “photographic rifle”, camera-carrying war pigeons and Axon’s body-cam tech, Theo Anthony’s inquisitive, mind-expanding doc about the false promise of the all-seeing eye is absorbing, scary, urgent. It’s the greatest Minority Report origin story you didn’t know you needed.

Augmented by Dan Deacon’s electronic soundscapes and Keaver Brenai’s lullingly robotic narration, All Light, Everywhere proves to be a captivating, intricately balanced experience that Harris describes as “one part Adam Curtis-esque cine-essay”, “one part structural experiment in the vein of Koyaanisqatsi” and “one part accidental character study of two of the most familiar yet strikingly unique evil, conservative capitalists…”. Yes, there’s a tremendous amount to download, but Anthony’s expert weaving, as AC writes, “make its numerous subjects burst with clarity and profundity.” For curious cinephiles, the oldest movie on Letterboxd, Jules Jenssen’s Passage de Vénus (1874), makes a cameo. —AY

The Sparks Brothers Directed by Edgar Wright

Conceived at a Sparks gig in 2017 upon the encouragement of fellow writer-director Phil Lord, Edgar Wright broke his streak of riotous comedies with his first (of many, we hope) rockumentary. While somewhat overstuffed—this is, after all, his longest film by nearly fifteen minutes—The Sparks Brothers speaks only to Wright’s unrestrained passion for his art-pop Gods, exploring all the nooks and crannies of Sparks’ sprawling career, with unprecedented access to brothers and bandmates Ron and Russell Mael.

Nobody else can quite pin them down, so Wright dedicates his time to put every pin in them while he can, building a mythology and breaking it down, while coloring the film with irresistible dives into film history, whimsically animated anecdotes and cheeky captions. “Sparks rules. Edgar Wright rules. There’s no way this wasn’t going to rule”, proclaims Nick, “every Sparks song is its own world, with characters, rules, jokes and layers of narrative irony. What a lovely ode to a creative partnership that was founded on sticking to one’s artistic guns, no matter what may have been fashionable at the time.” —JM

Narrative features

The Pink Cloud Written and directed by Iuli Gerbase

The Pink Cloud is disorienting and full of déjà vu. Brazilian writer-director Iuli Gerbase constructs characters that are damned to have to settle when it comes to human connection. Giovana and Yago’s pleasant one-night stand lasts longer than expected when the titular pink cloud emerges from the sky, full of a mysterious and deadly gas that forces everyone to stay locked where they stand. Sound familiar? Reserve your groans—The Pink Cloud wasn’t churned out to figure out “what it all means” before the pandemic is even over. Gerbase wrote and shot the film prior to the discovery of Covid-19.

It’s “striking in its ability to prophesize a pandemic and a feeling unknown at the time of its conception. What was once science fiction hits so close now,” writes Sam. As uncanny as the quarantine narrative feels, what’s truly harrowing is how well the film predicts and understands interiorities that the pandemic later exacerbated. Above all, Giovana is a woman with unmet needs. She is a good partner, good mother and good person even when she doesn’t want to be. Even those who love her cannot see how their expectations strip her of her personhood, and the film dares to ask what escape there might be when love itself leaves you lonely. —SH

Together Together Written and directed by Nikole Beckwith

Every festival needs at least one indie relationship dramedy, and Together Together filled that role at Sundance 2021 with a healthy degree of subversion. It follows rom-com structure while ostensibly avoiding romance, instead focusing on how cultivating adult friendships can be just hard, if not harder.

Writer-director Nikole Beckwith warmly examines the limits of the platonic, and Patti Harrison and Ed Helms are brilliantly cast as the not-couple: a single soon-to-be father and the surrogate carrying his child. They poke at each other’s boundaries with a subtle desperation to know what makes a friendship appropriate or real. As Jacob writes: “It’s cute and serious, charming without being quirky. It’s a movie that deals with the struggle of being alone in this world, but offers a shimmer of hope that even if you don’t fall in fantastical, romantic, Hollywood love… there are people out there for you.” —SH

Hive Written and directed by Blerta Basholli

Hive, for some, may fall into the “nothing much happens” slice-of-life genre, but Blerta Basholli’s directorial debut holds an ocean of pain in its small tale, asking us to consider the heavy lifting that women must always do in the aftermath of war. As Liz writes, “Hive is not just a story about grief and trauma in a patriarchy-dominated culture, but of perseverance and the bonds created by the survivors who must begin to consider the future without their husbands.”

Yllka Gashi is an understated hero as Fahrjie, a mother-of-two who sets about organizing work for the women of her village, while awaiting news of her missing husband—one of thousands unaccounted for, years after the Kosovo War has ended. The townsmen have many opinions about how women should and shouldn’t mourn, work, socialize, parent, drive cars and, basically, get on with living, but Fahrjie persists, and Basholli sticks close with an unfussy, tender eye. “It felt like I was a fly on the wall, witnessing something that was actually happening,” writes Arthur. Just as in Robin Wright’s Land and Mona Fastvold’s The World to Come, Hive pays off in the rare, beaming smile of its protagonist. —GG

On the Count of Three Directed by Jerrod Carmichael, written by Ari Katcher and Ryan Welch

It starts with an image: two best friends pointing guns at each other’s heads. There’s no anger, there’s no hatred—this is an act of merciful brotherly love. How do you have a bleak, gun-totin’ buddy-comedy in 2021 and be critically embraced without contradicting your gun-control retweets or appearing as though your film is the dying embers of Tarantino-tinged student films?

Comedian Jerrod Carmichael’s acerbic directorial debut On the Count of Three achieves this by calling it out every step of the way. Guns are a tool to give insecure men the illusion of power. They are indeed a tool too terrifying to trust in the hands of untrained citizens. Carmichael also stars, alongside Christopher Abbott, who has never been more hilarious or more tragic, bringing pathos to a cathartic rendition of Papa Roach’s ‘Last Resort’. Above all, Carmichael and Abbott’s shared struggle and bond communicates the millennial malaise: how can you save others if you can’t save yourself? “Here’s what it boils down to: life is fucking hard”, Laura sums up, “and sometimes the most we can hope for is to have a best friend who loves you [and] to be a best friend who loves. It doesn’t make life any easier, but it sure helps.” Sundance 2021 is one for the books when it comes to documentaries, but On the Count of Three stands out in the fiction lineup this year. —JM

Censor Directed by Prano Bailey-Bond, written by Bailey-Bond and Anthony Fletcher

The first of several upcoming films inspired by the ‘video nasty’ moral panic over gory horror in mid-’80s Britain, Prano Bailey-Bond leans heavily into both the period and the genre in telling the story of a film censor (a phenomenal Niamh Algar—vulnerable and steely at the same time) who begins to suspect a banned movie may hold the key to her sister’s childhood disappearance. Often dreamlike, occasionally phantasmagorical and repeatedly traumatic, even if the worst gore presented (as seen in the impressively authentic fictional horrors being appraised) appears via a screen, providing a welcome degree of separation.

Nevertheless, Censor is definitely not for the faint of heart, but old-school horror aficionados will squeal with delight at the aesthetic commitment. “I’m so ecstatic that horror is in the hands of immensely talented women going absolutely batshit in front of and behind the camera.” writes Erik. (Same here!) “A great ode to the video-nasty era and paying tribute to the great horror auteurs of the ’80s such as Argento, De Palma and Cronenberg while also doing something new with the genre. Loved this!” writes John, effectively encapsulating Censor’s unfettered film-nerd appeal. —DC

CODA Written and directed by Siân Heder

A film so earnest it shouldn’t work, with a heart so big it should surely not fit the size of the screen, CODA broke records (the first US dramatic film in Sundance history to win all three top prizes; the 25-million-dollar sale to Apple Studios), and won the world over like no other film. “A unique take on something we’ve seen so much,” writes Amanda, nailing the special appeal of Siân Heder’s coming-of-ager and family portrait. Emilia Jones plays Ruby, the only hearing person in her deaf family, at war between the family business and her passion for singing. While Heder is technically remaking the French film La Famille Bélier, the decision to cast brilliant deaf actors—Troy Kotsur, Marlee Matlin and Daniel Durant—makes this feel brand new.

But it’s not just about representation for the sake of it. A sense of authenticity, in humor as much as affection, shines through. With a script that’s 40 per cent ASL, so many of the jokes are visual gags, poking fun at Tinder and rap music, but a lot of the film’s most poignant moments are silent as well. And in Ruby’s own world, too, choir kids will feel seen. “I approve of this very specific alto representation and the brilliant casting of the entire choir,” Laura confirms in her review. Come for the fearless, empathetic family portrait, stay for the High School Musical vibes that actually ring true. —EK

We’re All Going to the World’s Fair Written and directed by Jane Schoenbrun

Perhaps the most singular addition to the recent flurry of Extremely Online cinema—Searching, Spree, Host, et al—Jane Schoenbrun’s feature debut ushers the viewer into a haunted, hypno-drone miasma of delirium-inducing YouTube time-suck, tenebrous creepypasta lore and painfully intimate webcam confessionals. Featuring an extraordinarily unaffected, fearless performance by newcomer Anna Cobb, the film “unpacks the mythology of adolescence in a way that’s so harrowingly familiar and also so otherworldly”, writes Kristen. Not since Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s Pulse has there been such an eerily lonely, and at times strangely beautiful, evocation of the liminal spaces between virtual and real worlds.

For members of the trans community, it’s also a work that translates that experience to screen with uncommon authenticity. “What Schoenbrun has accomplished with the form of We’re All Going to the World’s Fair is akin to catching a wisp of smoke,” writes Willow, “because the images, mood and aesthetic that they have brought to life is one that is understood completely by trans people as one of familiarity, without also plunging into the obvious melodrama, or liberal back-patting that is usually associated with ‘good’ direct representation.” One of the most original, compelling new voices to emerge from Sundance this year. —AY

Judas and the Black Messiah Directed by Shaka King, written by King, Will Berson, Kenneth Lucas and Keith Lucas

It was always going to take a visionary, uncompromising filmmaker to bring the story of Fred Hampton, the deputy chairman of the national Black Panther Party, to life. Shaka King casts Daniel Kaluuya as Hampton, and LaKeith Stanfield as William “Wild Bill” O’Neal, the FBI informant whose betrayal leads to Hampton’s assassination. Both actors have never been better, particularly Kaluuya who Fran Hoepfner calls “entrancing, magnetic, fizzling, romantic, riveting, endlessly watchable.”

Judas and the Black Messiah is an electric, involving watch: not just replaying history by following a certain biopic template. Instead, it’s a film with something to say—on power, on fear, on war and on freedom. “Shaka King’s name better reverberate through the halls of every studio after this,” writes Demi. A talent like this, capable of framing such a revolution, doesn’t come around so often. We’d better listen up. —EK

Pleasure Directed by Ninja Thyberg, written by Thyberg and Peter Modestij

A24’s first purchase of 2021. Ironically titled on multiple levels, Pleasure is a brutal film that you endure more than enjoy. But one thing you can’t do is forget it. Ninja Thyberg’s debut feature follows a young Swedish woman (Sofia Kappel) who arrives in Los Angeles with dreams of porn stardom under the name ‘Bella Cherry’. Although Bella is clear-eyed about the business she’s getting into, Thyberg doesn’t shy away from any of the awfulness she faces in order to succeed in an industry rife with exploitation and abuse. Bella does make allies, and the film isn’t suggesting that porn is only stocked with villains, but the ultimate cost is clear, even if it ends on an ever-so-slightly ambiguous note.

Touching as it does on ambition, friendship and betrayal in the sex business, Pleasure is often oddly reminiscent of Paul Verhoeven’s Showgirls. Or rather, the gritty film Showgirls was claiming to be, as opposed to the camp classic it became. There’s nothing campy here. Kappel is raw and fearless in the lead, but never lets the viewer lose touch with her humanity. Emma puts it well: “Kappel gives the hardest, most provocative and transfixing performance I’ve seen all festival.” “My whole body was physically tense during this,” writes Gillian, while Keegan perhaps speaks for most when she says “Great film, never want to see it again.” —DC

Coming Home in the Dark Directed by James Ashcroft, written by Ashcroft and Eli Kent

A family camping trip amidst some typically stunnin—and casually foreboding— New Zealand scenery is upended by a shocking rug-pull of violence that gives way to sustained terror represented by Daniel Gillies’ disturbingly calm psychopath. The set-up of this thriller initially suggests a spin on the backwoods brutality thriller, but as Coming Home in the Dark progresses and hope dissipates, the motivations reveal themselves to be much more personal in nature, and informed on a thematic level by New Zealand’s colonial crimes against its Indigenous population. It’s a stark and haunting film that remains disorientating and unpredictable throughout, repeatedly daring the viewer to anticipate what will happen next, only to casually stomp on each glimmer of a positive outcome.

It’s so captivatingly bleak that a viewing of it, as Collins Ezeanyim’s eloquent reaction points out, does not lend itself to completing domestic tasks. The film marks an auspicious debut for director and co-writer James Ashcroft. Jacob writes that he “will probably follow James Ashcroft’s career to the gates of Hell after this one”. Justin hits the nail on the head with his description: “Lean and exceptionally brutal road/revenge film … that trades in genre tropes, especially those of Ozploitation and ’70s Italian exploitation, but contextualizes them in the dark history of its country of origin.” —DC

The World to Come Directed by Mona Fastvold, written by Ron Hansen and Jim Shepard

Mona Fastvold has not made the first, nor probably the last, period romance about forbidden lesbian love. But The World to Come focuses on a specific pocket in time, a world contained in Jim Shepard’s short story ‘Love & Hydrogen’ from within the collection giving the film its name. Katherine Waterston and Vanessa Kirby are Abigail and Tallie, farming neighbors, stifled by their husbands, who find brief moments of solace, of astonishment and joy, together. What shines here is the script, a verbose, delicate narration that emanates beauty more than pretence. “So beautifully restrained and yet I felt everything,” Iana writes.

And you can feel the fluidity and elegance in the way the film sounds, too: composer Daniel Blumberg’s clarinet theme converses with the dialogue and tells you when your heart can break, when you must pause, when the end is near. “So much heartache. So much hunger. So much longing. Waves of love and grief and love and grief,” writes Claira, capturing the ebb and flow of emotion that keeps The World to Come in your mind long after the screen has gone silent. —EK